New Delhi, March 23 -- Days after it was reported that Iran had targeted the joint US-UK military base Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, a British minister has confirmed the same.

Speaking to BBC, UK Housing Secretary acknowledged on Sunday that an attempted attack by Tehran on Diego Garcia had indeed taken place, but had been unsuccessful.

"Our assessment is that the Iranians certainly targeted Diego Garcia. As we understand it, one missile fell short, failed. The other was intercepted and prevented," Reed said, confirming the initial report by The Wall Street Journal that had said two missiles were fired towards the base by Tehran.

Although, initially, it was not known whether the second missile had been successfully intercepted, Ree...