American F-16 taking off from an Israeli base during the bi-annual, multi-national aerial Blue Flag exercise, Oct. 24, 2021. (AP/Tsafrir Abayov)
U.S. officials are considering scaling back troop deployments in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait while investing in upgrades to the Bahrain installation.
By Vered Weiss, World Israel News
The Wall Street Journal reported that the United States is reviewing a broad overhaul of its military deployment across the Middle East after Iranian strikes inflicted heavy damage on Naval Support Activity Bahrain, with Israel emerging as one of the possible locations for relocated U.S. military assets.
As part of the review, U.S. officials are considering scaling back troop deployments in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait while investing in upgrades to the Bahrain installation.
The plan would reposition certain forces and operational capabilities farther west in an effort to place them outside the reach of Iranian missile and drone attacks.
Two officials familiar with the discussions told The Wall Street Journal that Israel is among the countries being considered to receive some of the military infrastructure and operations that could be moved under the proposed restructuring.
The newspaper said the assessment of the damage in Bahrain found that several essential facilities suffered direct hits, leaving some beyond repair.
The damaged sites include the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet, classified satellite communications infrastructure, storage facilities and military housing.
Officials estimate that repairing the damaged buildings alone will cost about $400 million, while the total price of restoring the base to full operational readiness is expected to be considerably greater.
The review comes after Iranian attacks during the 2026 conflict struck more than 20 U.S. military installations across the Middle East with thousands of missiles and drones, according to the report.
The attacks caused more than $800 million in damage to U.S. military infrastructure, destroyed sensitive air defense systems and aircraft, and killed 13 U.S. service members.
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