From Bahrain to Syria: Where US forces are stationed in the Middle East

Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - This combination of handout satellite photos obtained from Planet Labs PBC on June 19, 2025, of a photo taken on June 5, 2025 (left) shows military planes at the US military base of Al-Udeid in Qatar, and a photo taken June 19, 2025 (right) showing no more planes at the US military base of Al-Udeid in Qatar, one of the main US bases in the region. — Handout via AFP

WASHINGTON, June 23 — Iran yesterday threatened military bases used by US forces to launch attacks on the country’s nuclear sites, saying such facilities would be considered legitimate targets.

The United States has thousands of troops deployed on bases across the Middle East.

Below, AFP examines countries with major concentrations of US forces in the Middle East, which falls under the US military’s Central Command (Centcom).

Bahrain

The tiny Gulf kingdom hosts an installation known as Naval Support Activity Bahrain, where the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet and US Naval Forces Central Command headquarters are based.

Bahrain’s deep-water port can accommodate the largest US military vessels, such as aircraft carriers, and the US Navy has used the base in the country since 1948, when the facility was operated by Britain’s Royal Navy.

Several US ships have their home port in Bahrain, including four anti-mine vessels and two logistical support ships. The US Coast Guard also has vessels in the country, including six fast response cutters.

Iraq

The United States has troops at various installations in Iraq, including Al-Asad and Arbil air bases. The Iraqi government is a close ally of Iran, but also a strategic partner of Tehran’s arch-foe the United States.

There are some 2,500 US troops in Iraq as part of the international coalition against the Islamic State jihadist group. Baghdad and Washington have agreed on a timetable for the gradual withdrawal of the coalition’s forces from the country.

US forces in Iraq and Syria were repeatedly targeted by pro-Iran militants following the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023, but responded with heavy strikes on Tehran-linked targets, and the attacks largely subsided.

Kuwait

Kuwait has several US bases, including Camp Arifjan, the location of the forward headquarters for the US Army component of Centcom. The US Army also has stocks of prepositioned materiel in the country.

Ali al-Salem Air Base hosts the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing, which the military describes as the “primary airlift hub and gateway for delivering combat power to joint and coalition forces” in the region. Additionally, the United States has drones including MQ-9 Reapers in Kuwait.

Qatar

Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar includes the forward components of Centcom, as well as of its air forces and special operation forces in the region.

It also hosts rotating combat aircraft, as well as the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing, which the military says includes “airlift, aerial refueling intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, and aeromedical evacuation assets.”

Syria

The United States has for years maintained troop presences at a series of installations in Syria as part of international efforts against the Islamic State group, which rose out of the country’s civil war to overrun large parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq.

The Pentagon announced in April that it would roughly halve the number of its forces in the country to less than 1,000 in the coming months as part of a “consolidation” of US troops in the country.

In this image released by the US Air Force, a RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned surveillance drone sits in a hangar on February 17, 2019, at Al Dhafra Air Base, United Arab Emirates. — US Air Force handout/AFP pic

United Arab Emirates

Al Dhafra Air Base in the UAE hosts the US 380th Air Expeditionary Wing, a force that is composed of 10 squadrons of aircraft and also includes drones such as MQ-9 Reapers.

Combat aircraft have rotated through Al Dhafra, which also hosts the Gulf Air Warfare Centre for air and missile defence training. — AFP