Qatar’s evacuation order focused on areas hosting US economic interestspublished at 09:15 GMT
09:15 GMT
Barbara Plett Usher
Reporting from Doha
Shortly after midnight in Doha, people living in the central Musheireb district got phone alerts to evacuate immediately to the “nearest safe place” as a “precautionary measure”.
Some residents and hotel guests rushed into underground car parks for shelter.
Then around 01:30 (22:30 GMT) a thunderous boom echoed across the city.
A member of the BBC’s team here saw the explosion as the missile was intercepted, briefly lighting up the city skyline. That was followed by distant bangs in the opposite direction.
Later this morning, the Qataris shot down a second missile.
If you look at the areas receiving evacuation orders, it seems the aim was to protect places which host US economic interests. Iran said earlier this week these were legitimate targets.
Offices for Google and American Express are located in Musheireb, as are some Qatari government offices.
Parts of a 12-acre campus known as Education City were also evacuated, possibly because Microsoft has a presence there, as do branches of six American universities.