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Raskin Launches Investigation Into Evidence Epstein Was 'Foreign Agent' Working to Influence Trump Policies
"Numerous recently released documents now show he acted aggressively on behalf of multiple foreign governments... in order to influence policies of the first Trump administration."
Jul 21, 2026
The top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Jamie Raskin, launched an investigation Monday into whether the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein worked on behalf of foreign governments to influence President Donald Trump during his first term.
In a letter addressed to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche; Trump’s nominee to be director of national intelligence, Jay Clayton; and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Raskin (D-Md.) said that files provided to the Judiciary Committee show “substantial evidence” that Epstein acted to advance the interests of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, advised the Russian government on its dealings with Trump, and worked as a consultant to former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.
“Jeffrey Epstein never registered as a foreign agent," Raskin said. "Yet numerous recently released documents now show he acted aggressively on behalf of multiple foreign governments, including several with interests adverse to the United States, in order to influence policies of the first Trump administration."
Epstein, a convicted sex criminal who was found dead in his jail cell in 2019 after being charged with trafficking minors, has long been surrounded by questions about his relationships to foreign governments. But this is the first time an inquiry from the US Congress has expressly focused on them.
Raskin called attention to a trip taken by Epstein to Riyadh in November 2016, the week of Trump's first election, during which he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) before sending one of his representatives an email offering to become the "financial confidant" to members of the Saudi government. "I am happy to represent [Kingdom of Saudi Arabia] interests. period," he said.
Epstein also apparently offered to represent Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund in the US and serve as an adviser to a development project overseen by MBS. The crown prince's response to the proposal has not been provided to the committee, according to Raskin.
Several emails to friends and confidantes indicate that around the same time, Epstein was regularly boasting of his visits to Trump Tower and meetings with "Trump people" during the presidential transition, which he said presented "lots of opportunity."
Other correspondence seems to indicate that Epstein coached the emir of Kuwait on how to deal with Trump. In May 2017, prior to a summit of Gulf states in Riyadh, Epstein wrote to an unnamed political figure that he had “much to do around the Trump trip.”
The figure responded that he wanted “tips on how we should communicate with Trump,” specifically on the Saudi-led war against Yemen; Kuwait had played host to three months of UN-led negotiations related to the conflict the year before.
It is unclear from the records which US officials, if any, Epstein intended to engage on Kuwait's behalf.
Raskin also highlighted what is perhaps Epstein's most well-documented foreign government contact, Ehud Barak, who served as Israel's prime minister from 1999 to 2001 and later its minister of defense.
According to a trove of leaked emails published by Drop Site News last year, Epstein worked to create a backchannel between Barak and the Russian government and helped him to pursue a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in 2013 as he pushed for Russia to abandon its support for then-Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which was a major national security priority of Israel.
Epstein also provided information about US officials to Barak as he tried to push the Obama administration to take a harder stance toward Iran and Syria.
It is one of many instances in which Epstein and Barak worked to advance Israeli interests across the world, including brokering security and surveillance agreements with the governments of Mongolia and Côte d'Ivoire and helping to build the relationship between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.
Other emails reveal Epstein advising high-ranking Russian officials on how to deal with Trump as they sought to avoid sanctions placed by the US over its interference in the 2016 election and its aggression toward Ukraine.
Raskin said that Epstein seemed to be consciously acting as a foreign agent despite never registering as one under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). The congressman pointed to exchanges in which Epstein appeared to advise Trump's former chief strategist Steve Bannon on how to avoid FARA reporting requirements.
Raskin argued that Epstein's deep well of knowledge about Trump and his apparent access to members of his circle "posed a major national security liability." Epstein often bragged that he had leverage over the president and said he was "the one able to take [Trump] down."
The congressman argued for transparency in light of the administration’s efforts to delay the release of the files and withhold information despite congressional requirements.
Beyond potentially embarrassing revelations about Trump, he said the repeated use of the White House Situation Room to discuss the Epstein scandal indicated that it posed possible national security concerns that have not been disclosed to the public.
Raskin called on the Department of Justice and State Department to release all files referencing Epstein and other foreign nations and information that may point to his efforts to avoid FARA requirements.
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'War Crime': US Attack on Water Desalination Plant Cuts Off Supply for Thousands in Southern Iran
Iranian officials said the country was suspending its commitments to June's memorandum of understanding following repeated US attacks.
Jul 18, 2026
About 10,000 people in nearly two dozen villages in southern Iran were without drinking water while the region was under an excessive heat warning on Saturday, after the US struck a water desalination plant in the village of Bonji in one of its latest attacks on Iranian civilian infrastructure.
Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting said the drinking water supply was expected to be restored within a week, and emergency supply operations had begun.
Drop Site News reported comments from the deputy governor for political and security affairs in Hormozgan province, who said several missiles had hit power infrastructure and water desalination plants in the region near the Strait of Hormuz, which President Donald Trump has demanded control over as he's ramped up attacks on Iran in recent days, despite a ceasefire and a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to end hostilities that was agreed to in June.
On Saturday, Iranian officials said the country was suspending its commitments to the MOU after the US violated the agreement repeatedly over the past week.
“The US has violated and suspended all its commitments within the framework of the Islamabad MOU," said Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi. “We also likewise have suspended all of our commitments as a result; we are no longer implementing those commitments."
He added that Tehran is now "busy defending the country."
A representative for Hormozgan province, Ahmad Moradi, told Iran's Tasnim news agency that over the past two nights, "about seven to eight people" have been killed in US attacks, all of whom were civilians. One attack targeted a bridge and hit two family cars. The neighborhood of Tappeh Allaho Akbar in Bandar Abbas was also hit, killing a woman and injuring a one-year-old, whose wounds required doctors to amputate.
At least 116 telecommunication towers were out of service in southern Iran Saturday, Al Jazeera reported.
The Iranian Embassy in India posted a video of the destruction of a bridge and also condemned the US attack on a maritime surveillance tower at the Chabahar Port, which US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth boasted about on social media on Thursday.
"For a state that once cast itself as the global champion of order, liberalism, and the war on terrorism, proudly displaying images of destroyed bridges and civilian infrastructure has become its only remaining 'victory,'" said Esmaeil Baqaei, a spokesperson for Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Saturday. "Yet with the collapse of every bridge, every tower, and every civilian facility, it is not merely steel and concrete that is being reduced to rubble. It is America’s moral standing—along with the entire architecture of international law and the civilizational claims of the West—that is crumbling before the world’s eyes."
According to Drop Site, US attacks have targeted nine bridges, two airports, a railroad junction, and a road tunnel since Wednesday. At least 41 Iranians have been killed and 408 have been wounded in US attacks so far this month, with Iranian authorities reporting that at least three women and one child are among those killed.
In a letter to United Nations Secretary General António Guterres, Amir-Saeid Iravani, Iran's permanent UN representative, wrote on Saturday that US attacks had “targeted and caused extensive damage to ports, transportation networks, communications facilities, logistics hubs, radar installations, coastal defense systems and other infrastructure indispensable to the civilian population, and to the functioning of the national economy."
“The continued commission of these unlawful armed attacks poses a grave threat to international peace and security, freedom of navigation, regional stability, and the security of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz,” wrote Iravani.
Iran has retaliated against the US this week by striking American allies, including Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan. Kuwait's government Saturday said a power plant and water treatment plant had been attacked for the second time in two days, as well as an oil facility.
Two US soldiers were killed and a third was missing after an Iranian attack on a US military base in Jordan—the first American service members to be killed from hostile fire since an initial ceasefire was brokered in April.
Roxane Farmanfarmian, a professor of Middle East politics at the University of Cambridge, told Al Jazeera that Iranian forces are "using Kuwait, in particular, as an example of what they can do in retaliation."
“The US is clearly hitting the south in Iran and hitting airports, desalination plants, and bridges, and so the same kinds of things are being hit now in Kuwait to show what kind of effect Iran really can have on those countries that are hosting American bases," she said.
Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, echoed Iranian officials' condemnation of the US attack on the southern water desalination plant on Saturday, saying it was "not a legitimate military target."
"It is a war crime to target it," he said.
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Iran Accuses Europe of 'Appeasing Aggressors' as Trump Launches New Military Attacks
A spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry slammed the leadership of the European Union for "blaming Iran for exercising its right to self-defense against US aggression launched from bases in neighboring countries."
Jun 01, 2026
Iran's government on Monday condemned the European Union's response to Iranian attacks on US military installations in the Middle East as "a masterclass in selective moral outrage" as the Trump administration launched new strikes against Iran over the weekend, with peace talks still at an impasse.
Esmaeil Baqaei, a spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, accused EU leaders of "blaming Iran for exercising its right to self-defense against US aggression launched from bases in neighboring countries," referring to Iran's attacks on US air bases in Kuwait. Baqaei said Iran's strikes "against those bases and assets that are used to launch unlawful attacks against Iran are a lawful exercise of self-defense."
"The EU must remain faithful to the rule of law and the principles of the UN Charter that it has long claimed to uphold. It must stop appeasing aggressors while blaming those who respond to unlawful attacks," Baqaei added. "States have an established legal obligation not to allow their territory or assets to be used for invading other countries."
Baqaei's statement came in response to remarks from a European Commission spokesperson condemning an Iranian attack on a US air base in Kuwait last week, calling it a violation of Kuwait's sovereignty. The attack reportedly injured at least four US servicemembers and several American contractors.
The Iranian military said it targeted another US air base on Sunday in response to new attacks by the Trump administration, which launched its illegal war against Iran in late February. While Iran did not specify the location of its target, Kuwait said late Sunday that its "air defenses are currently confronting hostile missile and drone attacks."
The Iranian attacks followed the US military's announcement that it carried out strikes on "Iranian radar and command and control sites for drones" over the weekend. The US Central Command (CENTCOM) described the attacks as "self-defense strikes" and as a "measured and deliberate response" to "aggressive Iranian actions."
Brian Finucane, a senior adviser to the US Program at the International Crisis Group, wrote in response to CENTCOM's statement that "this administration’s use of the terms 'aggression' and 'self-defense' [is] thoroughly in 'war is peace' territory."
The US military also attacked a Gambia-flagged commercial ship in the Gulf of Oman over the weekend, enforcing a Trump administration naval blockade that Iran has condemned as illegal and said must be lifted as part of any peace agreement.
CBS News reported Saturday that "the broad strokes" of a peace deal under consideration "include a 60-day cessation of violence, along with clauses that call for reopening the strait and a framework to reopen negotiations on Iran's nuclear program."
"Multiple sources told CBS that the arrangement also involves the potential of waivers or sanctions relief to Iran that could allow it to access billions in frozen assets depending on the progress of the diplomacy," the outlet added.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran's top negotiator, said early Monday that the Trump administration's naval blockade and Israel's "escalation of war crimes in Lebanon" represent "clear evidence of US noncompliance with the ceasefire."
"Every choice has a price, and the bill comes due," he added. "It will all fall into place."
US President Donald Trump, meanwhile, wrote on his social media platform that "Iran really wants to make a deal, and it will be a good one for the USA and those that are with us."
"Just sit back and relax, it will all work out well in the end," Trump declared.
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Jailed US-Kuwaiti Journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin Acquitted on All Charges
The head of the Committee to Protect Journalists has called Shihab-Eldin's arrest for social media posts about the Iran war part of a trend of “increasing restrictions on freedom of expression” in the Gulf states.
Apr 23, 2026
US-Kuwaiti journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin is expected to be released after more than seven weeks in jail following his acquittal by a Kuwaiti court on Thursday.
The 41-year-old Shihab-Eldin, an award-winning reporter and documentarian who has worked at HuffPost, The New York Times, and Al Jazeera English, was detained by Kuwaiti authorities on March 2, just days after the US and Israel launched the opening salvos of their aggressive war against Iran, which was met with retaliatory strikes against US military bases across the Persian Gulf, including in Kuwait.
Shihab-Eldin, a US and Kuwaiti citizen who was in Kuwait to visit family, frequently commented on his public Substack account about news related to the war. One of his recent posts included a geolocated video, which was already public, of an American F-15 Strike Eagle jet falling from the sky near a US air base.
CNN later confirmed the video's authenticity, while the US military confirmed it was one of three American planes downed that day in what was described as a "friendly fire incident."
But shortly after posting the video, Shihab-Eldin found himself detained by Kuwaiti authorities on charges of "spreading malicious information online" and "harming national security."
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) called these "vague and overly broad accusations that are routinely used to silence independent journalists."
Legal counsel hired by Shihab-Eldin's sisters said on Thursday that he had been declared innocent of the charges by a Kuwaiti court and was expected to be released imminently, though some details were still being finalized.
“We are relieved that Ahmed Shihab-Eldin has been found innocent after 52 days in detention,” said Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of the CPJ. “Ahmed’s freedom and safety remain our topmost priority, and we will continue to closely monitor his case.”
Kuwait has come under heavy fire from Iran since the war began. In addition to attacks against American air bases, which have killed at least six US soldiers, Iran has targeted Kuwait's main airport and facilities at the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation.
Shihab-Eldin's arrest came as the Kuwaiti government began an aggressive clampdown on the sharing of video and other information related to Iranian attacks.
On May 2, Kuwait's Ministry of Information warned the public "not to photograph or publish any clips or information related to missiles or relevant locations."
Days later, the ministry announced that it was referring several "media law violators" for prosecution. It said, "Freedom of opinion and expression is guaranteed within the framework of the law and is coupled with professional responsibility, accuracy, credibility, and obtaining information from official sources."
On March 15, Kuwait introduced a censorship law stating that companies and individuals were "obligated to preserve the supreme interests of the military authorities." It imposed prison sentences of up to 10 years for anyone who “disseminates news, publishes statements, or spreads false rumors related to military entities” with the intent to undermine confidence in them.
The verdict in Shihab-Eldin's case was just one of 137 handed down on Thursday by a new court meant to oversee crimes related to national security and terrorism. Those defendants have been accused of “inciting sectarian strife on social media platforms,” according to Drop Site News, which cited Jordan's Al-Rai newspaper.
Shihab-Eldin was just one of nine defendants to be acquitted, though in 109 of the cases, no criminal punishment was handed down. Seventeen defendants received three years in prison, while another 10 received one year.
Ginsberg said Kuwait's repressive clampdown is part of a trend of "increasing restrictions on freedom of expression” that has been observed across the wider Middle East, and particularly the autocratic Gulf states that host American military bases, since the war's outbreak.
The governments of Qatar, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates have each arrested hundreds of people for filming or sharing content relating to Iranian strikes or other information related to the war or protests against the government, according to a report by Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN).
"This wave of repression reflects a deeper trend among Arab regimes: growing public frustration with US policy in the region and their governments' alignment with Washington," said Yara Bataineh, an editorial associate at DAWN's Democracy in Exile. "This crackdown did not begin with the war on Iran. Across several Arab states, authorities had already moved to suppress pro-Palestinian activism during Israel's genocide in Gaza—a pattern that has since intensified."
Israel's genocide in Gaza and expansionist military campaign into Lebanon have also proven historically deadly to journalists—including the Lebanese journalist Amal Khalid, who died under a pile of rubble on Wednesday from an attack by Israeli forces, who also attacked Red Cross workers attempting to rescue her. She is among hundreds of journalists and media workers who have been killed by Israeli attacks since 2023, according to the International Federation of Journalists.
“Almost inevitably, during a war, we see countries try to impose restrictions in the name of national security, and almost always that doesn’t just target genuine national security issues, but ends up covering a broad range of issues that are essential for us to understand what is happening,” Ginsberg told MS NOW. “That’s why we need journalists. We need journalists on the ground who can be our eyes and ears when we can’t get into these places and see for ourselves, so that we can understand what’s happening.”
She added, "It is an incredibly challenging time to be a journalist, and Ahmed’s case is emblematic of that."
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'The Situation Is Scary': Global Economic Chaos as Trump’s Iran War Sends Markets Diving
"To me, it was not just the worst-case scenario," said one economic analyst. "It was an unthinkable scenario."
Mar 09, 2026
President Donald Trump's unprovoked and unconstitutional war against Iran is sending shockwaves across the global economy in the form of skyrocketing oil prices and diving financial markets.
The prices of both Brent crude oil and WTI crude oil futures on Monday surged past $100 per barrel, as countries across the Middle East announced production cuts in the wake of chaos and destruction caused by the Iran war.
The impact of the price surge on the US stock market was immediate, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average opened Monday trading down by more than 600 points, while the Nasdaq dropped by 300 points.
According to a Monday report from the Wall Street Journal, both Iraq and Kuwait have announced oil production curbs because they have been unable to ship their supply through the Strait of Hormuz and have thus run out of space to store excess petroleum.
JPMorgan Chase analyst Natasha Kaneva noted to the Journal that this is the first time in recorded history that the Strait of Hormuz has ever been completely closed off for shipping, and warned the economic consequences would be severe.
"To me, it was not just the worst-case scenario," Kaneva said of the strait's closing. "It was an unthinkable scenario."
The Journal wrote that Trump's decision to launch a war with Iran has already sparked "the most severe energy crisis since the 1970s," which is now "threatening the global economy."
Petroleum industry analyst Patrick De Haan wrote in a Monday analysis that US drivers should expect to feel the impact of this oil shock in the coming days.
"Gasoline prices in many states could climb another 20 to 50 cents per gallon this week, with price-cycling markets potentially seeing increases as early as today," De Haan projected. "Diesel may rise even more sharply, with increases of 35 to 75 cents per gallon possible as global distillate markets react."
In a Monday analysis posted on his Substack page, Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman dove into the logistics of stopping and restarting oil production, and argued that the impact of the strait's closure will grow significantly as time goes on.
"As the Strait remains closed, producers are shutting down, and this isn’t like turning off a tap that can be quickly restarted," Krugman explained. "There’s apparently a real nonlinearity here: a two-week closure of the Strait has much more than twice the adverse impact on global oil supply as a one-week closure. If this goes on for multiple weeks... oil prices, which retreated slightly off their highs early this morning, could go much higher."
Krugman said that the shock was not yet bad enough to make an economic crisis inevitable because the US is much less dependent on oil than it was in the 1970s.
Nonetheless, Krugman cautioned, "the situation is scary."
Punchbowl News reported on Monday that the politics of the Iran war "have to worry" incumbent Republicans who were already in real danger of losing their majority in the US House of Representatives even before Trump launched an illegal war.
"With the Strait of Hormuz closed, oil prices have soared to more than $100 per barrel (from just under $70 per barrel 10 days ago)," wrote Punchbowl News. "There’s been a huge spike in gas prices nationally."
The report added that Trump has not been helping his party by expressing indifference bordering on hostility to Americans' concerns about how his war will impact their personal finances.
"Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace," Trump wrote in a Sunday Truth Social post. "ONLY FOOLS WOULD THINK DIFFERENTLY!"
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Lame-Duck Trump's "Middle East Arms Bonanza" Continues With Approval of $290 Million Weapons Sale to Saudi Regime
Additional arms deals this week include $4 billion in helicopters to Kuwait, $169 million in military equipment to Egypt, and $65 million in drones and fighter jets to UAE.
Dec 29, 2020
Despite opposition from the public and some members of Congress, the Trump administration in its waning days is rushing through weapons sales to a handful of Middle East nations with records of human rights abuses, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, whose U.S.-backed blockades and airstrikes have exacerbated civilian suffering and death in Yemen's ongoing civil war.
The U.S. State Department on Tuesday announced a flurry of deals, including $290 million in Boeing-made, precision-guided bombs to Saudi Arabia, $65 million in drones and fighter jets to the UAE, $169 million in military equipment to Egypt, and $4 billion in helicopters to Kuwait.
"President Trump's lame duck Middle East arms bonanza continues," said William Hartung, the director of the arms and security program at the Center of International Policy. "Selling more bombs to Saudi Arabia given its history of indiscriminate airstrikes that have killed thousands of civilians in Yemen should be a non-starter."
While the actions of Saudi Arabia and the UAE have come under increased scrutiny as a result of the Saudi-led assault on Yemen, Hartung also encouraged Congress and the incoming Biden administration to "review the sale of equipment to Egypt in light of its brutal and counterproductive counter-terror campaign in the Sinai, which has involved severe human rights abuses, the killing of innocent civilians, and the driving of thousands of families from their homes."
As The Guardian reported Wednesday, President-elect Joe Biden's transition team has complained that "it is not being properly briefed by the Pentagon on ongoing military operations, as is customary for an incoming administration in the weeks preceding inauguration, on January 20."
In an effort to impede the transfer of at least some weapons, the New York Center for Foreign Policy Affairs is reportedly planning to file a lawsuit Wednesday against Secretary of State Mike Pompeo over the proposed deal with the UAE.
The filing will claim the Trump administration has failed to meet the legal requirements of the Arms Export Control Act. For the deal to proceed, there must be "a full rationale for the sale and a consideration of the impact on U.S. security and world peace," The New Arab reported Wednesday. "The lawsuit also cites the UAE's actions in the Saudi-led air campaign in Yemen."
Although the U.S. Senate in early December failed to block President Donald Trump's $23 billion weapons deal with the UAE, "the lawsuit calls for an injunction to stop the sale," The Guardian reported.
The Trump administration has attempted to justify selling arms to the UAE, The Guardian noted, by saying the weapons allow the country "to deter increasing Iranian aggressive behavior and threats."
According to a press release (pdf) issued Tuesday by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, the arms deal with Saudi Arabia "will support U.S. foreign policy and national security objectives by helping to improve the security of a friendly country that continues to be an important force for political stability and economic growth in the Middle East."
Critics of the weapons sales, however, say the deals will worsen human rights violations and destabilize the region.
As The Hill reported, "Tuesday's notice kicks off a 30-day clock during which lawmakers can block the sale if they choose to."
"If Congress can't block it," Hartung said, "the Biden administration should do so when it takes office."
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An American General Probably Thinks- "Thanks Trump, for Putting a Target on My Back!"
In 2017, Trump gave the CIA the authority to again use assassin drones after it had been withdrawn by the Obama administration.
Jan 04, 2020
I suspect all U.S. Generals in the Middle East are thinking "Thanks Trump, for putting a target on my back!" after Iranian Major General Qassam Soliemani, the head of the Quds Revolutionary Forces, was assassinated outside of Baghdad's international airport by U.S. drone on the direct orders of President Trump.
As easy as it was for an American drone to blow up two vehicles in Soliemani's convoy coming from the airport, it will not be difficult for Iranian forces to retaliate by targeting senior U.S. military and diplomatic officials. Senate Majority leader Mitchell McConnell's comment that "our prayers are with U.S. diplomats and military in the region" is small consolation to those who will no doubt feel the brunt of Iranian ire over the assassination of one of the most popular leaders in Iran.
Should Wikileaks ever have another Chelsea Manning or Ed Snowden that will provide the world with documents that reveal the Trump administration's deliberations on the decision to cataclysmically escalate the confrontation with Iran, a country of 80 million that has been under U.S. sanctions since the 1979 revolutionary overthrow of the U.S.-backed Shah of Iran, we will finally find out who in the administration supported the decision and who was against it.
My guess is that the U.S. military was against the assassination knowing that U.S. military forces will get the brunt of Iranian retaliation. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley said, "Damn right, this puts our troops at risk." I think he realizes that he himself would be one of the first retaliatory targets.
I would guess that the CIA was for the assassination, the CIA's whose officials can generally hide from public view. And it probably was a CIA drone, not a U.S. military drone that fired the missiles that assassinated Soleimani. In 2017, Trump gave the CIA the authority to again use assassin drones after it had been withdrawn by the Obama administration.
No matter who was for and against the assassination, when you look for targets for retaliation, there are many: oil fields in Saudi Arabia, oil tankers in the Persian Gulf, big US military installations in Qatar (Central Command forward), Bahrain (5th fleet) and Djibouti (naval and drone bases)
Here are 36 bases with US Military forces in 14 countries that are neighbors with Iran. Additionally, there is a U.S. Embassy in each of those 14 countries as well as in Lebanon that could be targets for retribution for the assassination of General Soleimani.
Afghanistan
Sharing its western border with Iran is Afghanistan. There are approximately 14,000 US military in Afghanistan and reportedly twice as many civilian contractors. There are 17,000 NATO troops from 39 countries in Afghanistan. There are six active U.S. military bases. The three major bases are listed below.
Bagram Air Base
- Largest US military base in Afghanistan with US Army, Marines, Navy and Air Force troops located there. Medical and logistics facilities are located here as well as various types of aircraft and helicopters.
Shindand Air Base in Heart Province
- A shared base with US and NATO forces
Kandahar International Airport
- Joint base with NATO forces
Bahrain
There are over 7,000 U.S. military personnel based in Bahrain, and the U.S. has maintained a naval presence in the country since 1948. The U.S. 5th fleet is based in Bahrain and patrols an area of responsibility covering the Arabian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, the Red Sea, and the Arabian Sea, including the Strait of Hormuz, the Suez Canal, and the Strait of Bab al Mandeb.
Naval Support Activity Bahrain
- U.S. Naval Forces Central Command.
- Headquarters of the U.S. 5th Fleet.
- Close to Khalifa Bin Salman port, which is capable of berthing U.S. aircraft carriers. The U.S. has spent $580 million between 2010-2017 on expansion of the facility, and a total of $2 billion since establishing a presence. National Security Strategy Naval Support Activity Bahrain.
Shaikh Isa Air Base
- Recently improved with $45 million in U.S. funding. Hosts F-16s, F/A-18s, and P-3 aircraft.
- 12,467 ft runway. Muharraq Air Base (Navy)
- The Combined Task Force 53 aviation unit is based in Bahrain.
Part of Bahrain International Airport.
- In 2011, saw a monthly average of 1,600 tons of cargo and mail, and 3000 personnel in transit.
Djibouti
U.S. military presence in Djibouti was established in 2003 with a formal agreement that provides access to the airport through Camp Lemonnier and the port facilities. Since that time, Djibouti has hosted the only combat-capable U.S. military base in Africa, until the construction of a U.S. drone base in Niger.
Camp Lemonnier
- Formerly a French Foreign Legion base.
- Hosts 4,000 U.S. troops. Tasked with fighting the Somalia-based Al Shabaab and conducting counter-terror operations in Somalia.
- Considered a Navy facility shares a runway with Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport.
- 10,335 ft runway.
- Combined Joint Task Force Horn of Africa operates out of Lemonnier.
- Operations using manned and unmanned aerial vehicles have been based out of Lemonnier, including missions into Yemen.
- China recently opened its first overseas military base adjacent to the Doraleh Port, and very close to Camp Lemonnier. It is believed China will deploy around 1,000 personnel. In May 2017, China began constructing a 330+ meter pier to support its naval vessels.
Egypt
The U.S. military does not maintain combat basing in Egypt, despite the historically robust military cooperation between the countries since the conclusion of the 1979 Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty. The only U.S. military facility in Egypt conducts medical research.
Naval Medical Research Unit Three (NAMRU-3)
- Based in Cairo.
- Facilities for conducting infections disease research and prevention.
- Runs syndrome, pathogen, and vector surveillance networks in Egypt and the region.
- Largest DoD overseas laboratory with biosafety level 3 bio-containment space.
Iraq
Since the withdrawal of U.S. forces in 2011, the U.S. has not maintained permanent facilities in Iraq. As the U.S. presence in Iraq has evolved during the conduct of Operation Inherent Resolve, the primary U.S. presence appears to be located at Al Asad Air Base.
Al Asad Air Base
- Task Force Lion (aka Task Force Al Asad) operates out of Al Asad Air Base in Iraq's western Anbar Province. Task Force Lion advises, assists and "enables" the Iraqi military. Has elements of four of the armed services.
- Colloquially known as "Camp Cupcake" during the Iraq war, due to the prominent amenities. Many of these amenities are no longer available.
- Two 13,124 foot runways.
- Some Danish military personnel part of training mission for the Iraqi Security Forces.
Israel
The U.S. has long maintained a security relationship with Israel, and in recent years has partnered to develop systems like the Iron Dome air defense system. Ships of the U.S. 6th fleet frequently make port visits to Haifa, but the building of U.S. facilities in Israel is new. U.S. deployments to Israel are small and intended to support anti-ballistic missile emplacements.
Dimona Radar Facility
- AN/TPY-2 Radar system, a type of X-Band Radar.
- Used to spot potential incoming ballistic missiles from Iran.
Mashabim Air Base / Bisl'a Aerial Defense School
- Run by EUCOM.
- Contains a Living Facility which houses 40 soldiers serving the missile defense mission.
Jordan
The U.S. presence in Jordan has expanded with the evolution of Operation Inherent Resolve against ISIS, with forces located at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base. Publicly available commercial satellite imagery indicates the presence of potential U.S. reaper drones at other bases in Jordan, but this is not acknowledged by the United States. U.S. military cooperation with Jordan is close. Most recently, U.S. troops participated in the "Eager Lion" exercises, involving several thousand U.S. Marines training alongside Jordanian troops.
Muwaffaq Salti Air Base (Azraq)
- U.S. allocated $143 million for upgrades and expansion in 2018.
- The pace of operations against ISIS has strained physical capacity of the base. Limited ramp space restricts operations, and facilities for handling cargo and personnel are limited as well.
- Hosts multiple coalition partners, including Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
- Two runways, 9,015 ft and 9,777 ft.
Kuwait
The U.S. has maintained a Defense Cooperation Agreement with Kuwait since 1991 Persian Gulf War. As such, Kuwait holds major non-NATO U.S. ally status. Since 2011, troops garrisoned in Kuwait are primarily intended to support Operation Spartan Shield, a mission to "deter regional aggression and stabilize countries within the region." The military currently maintains a force of 2,200 MRAPs in Kuwait.
Ali Al Salem Air Base
- Two 9,805 ft runways.
- 386th Air Expeditionary Wing is a primary occupant, operating C-17 and C-130 cargo aircraft.
- Base operates as a way station for troops.
Camp Arifjan
- Serves as U.S. HQ in Kuwait.
- Built by the Kuwaiti government at a cost of $200 million to replace temporary basing structure originally used since the Gulf War.
- Features a Joint Military Mail Terminal.
Camp Buehring
- Broke ground on $3.7 million living facilities expansion in 2017.
- Has precision approach radar capability, allowing for low visibility landings.
- 5,215 ft runway.
Camp Patriot
- U.S. Army Facility.
- Shares space with Kuwait Naval Base.
- For the 2003 Iraq invasion, Navy Seabees constructed a temporary pier, known as an elevated causeway system modular (ELCAS/M), to support the offloading of equipment.
Oman
The U.S. maintains an ability to use Omani bases through the Oman Facilities Access Agreement, originally signed in 1980, and most recently renewed in 2010. This accord made Oman the first country among the Persian Gulf States to explicitly partner militarily with the U.S. According to the agreement, the U.S. can request access to these facilities in advance for a specified purpose. Oman has allowed 5,000 aircraft overflights, 600 landings, and 80 port calls annually. During the early stages of Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan (in late 2001), the U.S. relied considerably on Omani air bases. However, in subsequent years, U.S. presence in Oman has dwindled significantly.
Muscat International Airport
- Formerly known as Seeb Air Base.
- Usable under the Facilities Access Agreement.
- Two runways recently extended to 13,123 ft.
- War reserve materiel stored at this location.
RAFO Thumrait
- 13,123 foot runway.
- War reserve material stored at this location.
Al-Musannah Air Base
- Airlift apron designed for C-5 and C-130 aircraft.
- War reserve materiel stored at this location.
Port of Duqm
- The recently opened British-Omani Duqm Naval Dockyard was designed with the intent of hosting ships from friendly nations for repair and maintenance.
- Recently expanded facilities at Duqm have allowed for the repair and maintenance of U.S. Navy vessels.
- Capable of supporting U.S. aircraft carriers and submarines.
- Duqm is attracting the interest of many countries, including India, Iran, the U.K., the U.S., and China.
Port of Salalah
- Largest port in Oman.
- The Defense Logistics Agency operated a recently opened material processing center providing material transshipment, short-term storage and delivery functions for visiting U.S. Navy vessels and other U.S. customers in the U.S. Central Command AOR.
Qatar
Qatar hosts approximately 10,000 U.S. service personnel, mostly at Al Udeid Air Base. Since the 1990s, Qatari base construction strategy has been deliberately intended to attract the United States to its facilities. As the U.S. withdrew the majority of its forces from Saudi Arabia in 2003 following the initial invasion of Iraq, basing in Qatar allowed for the permanent redeployment of those assets. The U.S. has relied heavily on its basing in Qatar to conduct the counter-ISIS military mission, Operation Inherent Resolve.
Al Udeid Air Base
- Biggest U.S. base in the Middle East.
- Home to U.S. Combined Air Operations Center, U.S. Air Forces Central Command, U.S. Special Operations Command Central Forward, and CENTCOM Forward HQ.
- Built in 1996 at a cost of $1 billion before Qatar had an air force and a total of $4 billion to fund the base since.
- Qatar is currently expanding the base with 200 additional housing units.
- The existence of the Al Udeid air base allowed for the relocation of U.S. assets previously stationed at Prince Sultan Airbase, Saudi Arabia in 2003. This move addressed a common grievance against the U.S. amongst Muslim populations.
- Two 12,000+ foot runways,78 capable of supporting all aircraft in the U.S. arsenal.
Camp As Sayliyah
- An Army operated facility that can store joint equipment.
- Serves as a prepositioning point for one brigade's worth of armored equipment.
- Features a large number of climate-controlled warehouse units.
- Also featured a Stryker Damage Repair facility which repaired hundreds of Stryker vehicles damaged in combat in Iraq and Afghanistan until the repair facility's closure in 2014.
Saudi Arabia
The U.S. withdrew the vast majority of its forces in 2003, as the invasion of Iraq eliminated the need for a troop presence in Saudi Arabia. Today, many of the American military personnel still in Saudi Arabia are part of the U.S. Military Training Mission, and do not provide an operational combat capability. Undoubtedly, USMTM personnel travel and work at different Saudi bases to complete their mission, but the primary "basing" point is Eskan Village near Riyadh.
Eskan Village
- Features fully furnished villas for U.S. personnel.
- Serves as a housing facility for U.S. military personnel, primarily those assigned to the U.S. Military Training Mission.
- Also hosts Army personnel of the Saudi Arabian National Guard Modernization Program and Ministry of the Interior Military Assistance Group.
- Base not intended for combat operations. Base security provided by 341st Military Police Company.
Syria
The U.S. withdrew from its 22 bases in Syria in October 2019 but has returned to six of them in northeast Syria. U.S. forces in Syria are primarily guarding Syrian oil facilities.
Turkey
Turkey is the only NATO member in the Middle East region.
Incirlik Air Base
- U.S. stores upwards of 50 B-61 nuclear gravity bombs at Incirlik.
- Construction on the base started by the U.S. in 1951.
- Base has been used heavily for operations against ISIS, but U.S. was denied sortie rights for the 2003 Iraq invasion.
- 10,000 foot runway.
- In the wake of the 2016 coup attempt, the Turkish Government cut power to the air base for several days and closed the airspace around the base.
- Approximately 2,500 U.S. military personnel based at Incirlik.
Izmir Air Station
- Located adjacent to Cigli air base, a Turkish-run base.
- Home of 425th Air Base squadron, a detachment of the 39th Air Base Wing out of Incirlik Air Base.
- Administers the Cigli AB Loan Agreement.
- Supports numerous U.S./NATO missions in the Izmir Area, including NATO Allied Land Command Headquarters.
United Arab Emirates
The U.S. maintains approximately 5,000 personnel in the UAE under a defense cooperation agreement. The security relationship between the U.S. and UAE is robust, and has featured combat operations in Afghanistan in which UAE aircraft provided close air support to American troops on the ground.
Al Dhafra Air Base
- U.S. presence at this base not publicly acknowledged until 2017.
- Host the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing, including such aircraft as the F-22 Raptor, KC-10, RQ-4 Global Hawk, E-3 Sentry, and U-2 Dragon Lady.
- Two 12,012 foot runways.
- An estimated 3,500 U.S. personnel stationed in 2015,100 upwards of 3,800 in 2016.
- Busiest U.S. base in the world for surveillance flights.
- Hosts a joint Air Warfare Center used by the U.S. to train personnel from multiple countries in aspects of combat and interoperable missions.
Port of Jebel Ali
- Busiest U.S. Navy port of call.
- Largest manmade deep-water harbor in the world.
- Capable of berthing U.S. aircraft carriers.
- No ships supported or permanently based, and U.S. Navy ships do not take priority over commercial vessels.
Fujairah Naval Base
- Located on the outside of the Persian Gulf, before crossing the Strait of Hormuz.
- Offers a logistical "land link" to Jebel Ali should the Strait of Hormuz be closed.
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US, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait Launch 'Ludicrous' Effort to 'Sabotage' Support for Key UN Climate Study
Politicians, activists, and experts sharply condemned the move, emphasizing that "we are talking about the future of the world."
Dec 08, 2018
The COP24 talks in Katowice, Poland have led to a "diplomatic standoff" that has world leaders, climate activists, and experts alarmed as four "oil allies"--the United States, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait--have banded together to "water down" worldwide support for a landmark United Nations climate study released in October.
"It's really an embarrassment for the world's leading scientific superpower to be in this position of having to disbelieve a report that was written by the world's scientific community including a large number of pre-eminent U.S. scientists."
--Alden Meyer, UCS
Most world leaders gathered in Poland to discuss how to meet the goals of the Paris agreement seemed eager to heed the warnings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) special report on what the world could look like if the global temperature rises to 1.5degC versus 2degC (2.7degF versus 3.6degF)--which has elicited demands for "rapid, far-reaching, and unprecedented" reforms to avert climate catastrophe.
The four-nation coalition of oil-exporting nations, however, wasn't having it--and aimed to make it easier for governments to ignore such calls for urgent action to address the climate crisis by fighting against a motion to "welcome" the study. Instead, they suggested, it should merely be "noted."
"The United States was willing to note the report and express appreciation to the scientists who developed it, but not to welcome it, as that would denote endorsement of the report," the U.S. State Department said. "As we have made clear in the IPCC and other bodies, the United States has not endorsed the findings of the report."
Last year, President Donald Trump revealed his intention to withdraw from the Paris agreement, provoking immediate condemnation across the United States and the rest of the world. Within a few months of that announcement, all other countries had signed on to the accord, leaving the U.S. as the sole nation opposed to it.
Efforts by the U.S. and others on Saturday to block global support for the IPCC report raised immediate concern and frustration among climate experts.
"It's very frustrating that we are not able to take into account the report's findings: we are talking about the future of the world--it sounds like hyperbole when I say it, but that's how serious it is."
--Rueanna Haynes, St. Kitts and Nevis delegate
"I think it was a key moment," Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) told the Associated Press. "The fact that a group of four countries were trying to diminish the value and importance of a scientific report they themselves, with all other countries, requested three years ago in Paris is pretty remarkable."
"It's really an embarrassment for the world's leading scientific superpower to be in this position of having to disbelieve a report that was written by the world's scientific community including a large number of pre-eminent U.S. scientists," he said.
Meyer, who has tracked climate negotiations for many years, didn't just lay blame on the U.S. though. He also noted that "the Saudis with their sidekicks the Kuwaitis have long been troublemakers in this in this process."
"We've seen this story before--a small number of bad actors who, in essence, are conspiring to prevent the implementation of an agreement where there's otherwise support among the rest of the world's nations--in this case, the conclusion that we need to keep warming below one-and-a-half degrees Celsius, and that requires substantial reductions in carbon emissions over the next 10 or 12 years," Penn State climate scientist Michael Mann said in an interview with BBC News.
Acknowledging that unfortunately, the small group of countries sabotaging the motion to welcome the study seem to be "focused on their own short-term financial interests at the expense of the larger interests of this planet," Mann reiterated the need for, among other changes, a swift global transition to renewable energy to stabilize warming "below catastrophic levels."
"Deliberately ignoring the IPCC report would be wholly irresponsible," declared May Boeve, executive director of 350.org, vowing that her group "stands with the rest of world in condemning these climate deniers...and the vested fossil fuel interests behind them."
The sabotage efforts also infuriated some of those participating in the talks in Poland--including Rueanna Haynes, a delegate for St. Kitts and Nevis, who reportedly told her fellow diplomatic representatives during the plenary that it was "ludicrous" to not welcome the IPCC's warnings.
"It's very frustrating that we are not able to take into account the report's findings: we are talking about the future of the world--it sounds like hyperbole when I say it, but that's how serious it is," she told the Guardian. "I would say that this issue has to be resolved. This is going to drag out and the success of the COP is going to hang on this as well as other issues."
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Experts Slam Surprise US "Electronics Ban" on Flights from Muslim-Majority Countries
'It is strange that this electronics ban is about security, but includes no countries on the #MuslimBan, which was also about security,' wrote ThinkProgress editor Adrienne Mahsa
Mar 21, 2017
Criticism abounded Tuesday after the U.S. government announced a surprise ban on any electronics "larger than a cell phone" on flights from eight Muslim-majority countries--Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Qatar, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
The U.K. is reportedly set to announce the same move Tuesday.
"From a technological perspective, nothing has changed between the last dozen years and today. That is, there are no new technological breakthroughs that make this threat any more serious today," Bruce Schneier, a security technologist, told the Guardian. "And there is certainly nothing technological that would limit this newfound threat to a handful of Middle Eastern airlines."
The 10 airports affected are Queen Alia International Airport (AMM), Cairo International Airport (CAI), Ataturk International Airport (IST), King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED), King Khalid International Airport (RUH), Kuwait International Airport (KWI), Mohammed V International Airport (CMN), Hamad International Airport (DOH), Dubai International Airport (DXB), and Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH).
Officials gave airlines 96 hours to comply with the restrictions or risk losing their authorization to operate in the U.S., carriers said.
Under the restrictions, set to take effect Tuesday, travelers would have to stow any personal electronic devices larger than a cell phone or smart phone in their checked baggage.
Senior U.S. administration officials said late Monday that the new restrictions were prompted by "evaluated intelligence" that terrorists were smuggling explosives in "portable electronic devices," although they did not elaborate on what that meant.
But observers said the new rules were illogical and potentially discriminatory.
Nicholas Weaver, researcher at the International Computer Science Institute at the University of California, Berkeley, added to the Guardian, "It's weird, because it doesn't match a conventional threat model."
"If you assume the attacker is interested in turning a laptop into a bomb, it would work just as well in the cargo hold," he said. "If you're worried about hacking, a cell phone is a computer."
Others noted that the government's basis for the new rules--claiming security threats--seems incongruous with its other recent travel restrictions.
"It is strange that this electronics ban is about security, but includes no countries on the #MuslimBan, which was also about security," tweeted Adrienne Mahsa, an editor at ThinkProgress.
Likewise, wrote Zach Whittaker, security editor at ZDNet and CBS News:
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Scorching Middle East Beats All-Time Heat Records for Eastern Hemisphere
"I've never seen Celsius temps like these on a weather map before," climate scientist Michael Mann said on Twitter.
Jul 22, 2016
Thermometers in Kuwait and Iraq reached record-shattering temperatures this week, with Weather Underground reporting that the measurements could be the hottest ever seen in the Eastern Hemisphere.
According to Weather Underground's Jeff Masters, the temperature in Mitribah, Kuwait climbed to an "astonishing" 54degC (129.2degF) on Thursday. And on Friday, Basrah, Iraq International Airport reported a high temperature of 53.9degC (129degF).
"Today's high in Basrah is the second highest reliably measured temperature in world recorded history outside of Death Valley, California," Masters wrote. "Only yesterday's 54degC (129.2degF) at Mitribah, Kuwait was hotter."
"I've never seen Celsius temps like these on a weather map before," climate scientist Michael Mann said on Twitter.
The Washington Post notes, "It's also possible that these 129.2-degree readings match the hottest ever reliably measured anywhere in the world."
The Post's Jason Samenow explains:
Death Valley currently holds the record for the world's hottest temperature of 134.1 degrees (56.7 Celsius), set July 10, 1913. But Weather Underground's [Christopher] Burt does not believe it is a credible measurement: "[T]he record has been scrutinized perhaps more than any other in the United States," Burt wrote. "I don't have much more to add to the debate aside from my belief it is most likely not a valid reading when one looks at all the evidence."
If you discard the Death Valley record from 1913, the pair of 129.2-degree readings from Mitribah and Basra over the past two days would tie the world's highest known temperature, also observed in Death Valley on June 30, 2013, and in Tirat Tsvi, Israel, on June 22, 1942. But Masters says the Israeli measurement is controversial.
The Middle East is expected to get a respite from the current heat wave on Saturday, according to Weather Underground, when "the ridge of high pressure bringing the record heat will weaken, bringing temperatures about 10degF cooler to Iraq and Kuwait, and about 2-4degF cooler to Iran"--which was expected to break or come close to its own heat records on Friday.
A study published earlier this year in the journal Climatic Change predicted that by the end of this century, "climate change and increasing hot weather extremes in the [Middle East and North Africa], a region subject to economic recession, political turbulence and upheaval, may exacerbate humanitarian hardship and contribute to migration."
The U.S. is also in the middle of a heat wave, with the National Weather service having issued heat alerts for more than 20 central, southwest, and eastern states.
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