Satellite Images Reveal Extent of Iranian Damage to U.S. Base in Bahrain

The Wall Street Journal reports that Iranian strikes between late February and June caused far more damage to the U.S. Navy base in Bahrain than previously disclosed. Satellite analysis, social media images, and interviews with current and former military personnel indicate that the Fifth Fleet headquarters, satellite communications facilities, warehouses, housing buildings, and other structures were hit, with some now unusable.

The article says rebuilding the damaged structures is estimated at about $400 million, and the final cost is expected to be much higher. The base, officially called Naval Support Activity Bahrain, was repeatedly targeted over that period. The Pentagon had not publicly acknowledged the full extent of the damage.

The U.S. military said no one was killed at the base and that the attacks did not significantly affect operations. Washington evacuated most personnel but kept a small team on site. U.S. Central Command spokesperson Tim Hawkins said, “During the war, CENTCOM rightly prioritized protecting people over buildings, and our strategy for protecting people worked. Iran fired more than 8,000 missiles and drones and only two strikes caused American fatalities.” He added that the U.S. inflicted far greater damage on Iran, striking more than 13,500 targets.

The damage at the Bahrain base and more than 20 other U.S. facilities in the Middle East is prompting the Pentagon to reassess its force posture in the region. Options under review include not rebuilding some damaged structures, moving command and control underground, reducing the U.S. presence in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, shifting some military capabilities westward beyond the range of Iranian missiles and drones, building underground control facilities, and potentially transferring some U.S. capabilities to Israel in the future. The Bahrain base can host any type of U.S. Navy ship and has played a key role against arms smuggling, mine laying, and Iranian tanker attacks.