🇺🇸⚔️🇮🇷 U.S. Troops reveal hidden toll of Iranian strikes on US bases: "Some of us don't care if we live or die anymore"
US outlet
MeidasTouch, together with VALOR Media Network, has published dozens of never-before-seen photos and videos showing damage from Iranian strikes on US bases in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, the UAE and Bahrain since the war began on February 28. Service members, contractors and military families who provided them say the Pentagon kept the scale of the losses from the American public. They spoke anonymously, saying they had been repeatedly threatened with disciplinary action for speaking out or sharing images.
Several said this was nothing like their previous combat deployments. Some were involved in the US campaign against Iran but only learned the war had started from the news. One described being sent out in mid-February for what was supposed to be three weeks and ending up staying more than seven months. Troops said they had no defense against Iranian drones.
➡️Saudi Arabia: At Prince Sultan Air Base, images taken between March and July show destroyed dining halls and workspaces, damaged dorms, shelters with their doors not yet installed, and aircraft burning on the tarmac. Sources say one strike damaged an E-3 AWACS surveillance plane and two KC-135 refueling tankers, injuring 10 to 12 personnel. One source claims a C-17 cargo plane was completely destroyed and its wreckage piled up to speed cleanup and limit knowledge of the loss. The Pentagon has not confirmed this. Videos also show US interceptors failing to stop a ballistic missile that went on to hit the base.
➡️Jordan: At Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, troops describe about three months of near-constant incoming fire, so frequent the alarms couldn't keep up. F-15s, F-35s, MQ-9 Reaper drones, helicopters and command facilities were reportedly damaged. On the night of July 17-18, Iranian missiles and drones got past defenses and hit barracks, killing three service members. Sources say they could hear trapped troops calling for help from inside the flames but couldn't reach them due to poor emergency response. The base was overcrowded, supplies repeatedly ran out, housing areas were blown up twice, and a hangar full of gear packed for the trip home took a direct hit. When troops were finally told they were going home, they were ordered to stay while already waiting in the terminal.
➡️Kuwait: After the first attacks, some service members scattered into the desert and lived out of a van for three months. Photos from September show Camp Buehring almost completely abandoned, with parts off-limits at night.
➡️UAE: Troops say they had no warning and no shelters. Only small security teams were armed. Some holed up in hotels and ordered takeout for food, while others dug their own foxholes. They described their leadership as rudderless.
➡️Bahrain: Images show damage to the US Navy's Fifth Fleet headquarters. Families say local commanders had evacuation planes waiting, but the Pentagon refused to allow it because it would look bad at home. Then the airport was hit and closed. Some families paid tens of thousands of dollars to escape on their own, while others hid in a mall parking garage during the first wave of strikes. Sources claim some senior officers were evacuated under the cover of a training exercise and warned their own families. Residential buildings and hotels housing US personnel were reportedly struck within hours of troops being moved in. The wife of a US contractor said she had to flee through Saudi Arabia at her own expense with no help from the US government.
Troops describe collapsing morale, say they don't know what they are fighting for and don't believe in the Trump administration. Several said Gulf host countries did more to protect them and their families than Washington did. Some have heard rumors that deployments could be extended beyond a year.
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