US Military Losses Mount as Middle East Escalation Intensifies, Nearly US$2 Billion
A series of retaliatory strikes by Iran is reported to have damaged a number of facilities and US military assets in the Middle East, with total losses estimated at nearly US$2 billion. Losses include the AN/FPS-132 early warning radar system at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, reportedly struck by Iranian missiles. The radar system is valued at around US$1.1 billion, and Qatari authorities confirmed that the radar was affected and damaged.
The following day, three F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets were reportedly destroyed in a misdirected-fire incident involving Kuwait’s air defences. All six crew members survived, but the three aircraft could not be recovered. Replacement costs are estimated at around US$282 million.
In the initial strikes, Iran also targeted the United States Fifth Fleet headquarters in Manama, Bahrain. Two satellite communication terminals and several large buildings were reported destroyed. Open-source intelligence analysis identified the attacked SATCOM terminal as AN/GSC-52B, with an estimated value around US$20 million, including installation costs.
Iran also claimed to have destroyed AN/TPY-2 radar components from the THAAD missile defence system placed in Al-Ruwais Industrial City, United Arab Emirates. Satellite imagery shows evidence of damage at that location. The radar components are estimated to be worth around US$500 million.
If all estimates are combined, total losses of US military assets in the region are around US$1.902 billion. Since Saturday, Iran has reportedly targeted at least seven US military facilities in the Middle East. These targets include the Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain, Camp Arifjan, Ali Al Salem Air Base, Camp Buehring in Kuwait, Erbil Base in Iraq, Jebel Ali Port in the United Arab Emirates, and Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
In Kuwait, photographs taken on Sunday show collapsed roof sections at Ali Al Salem Air Base in the wake of the prior day’s attack. Camp Arifjan was reported as the site where six US military personnel were killed. A circulating video shows a drone flying over Camp Buehring before exploding inside the perimeter of the base.
Verification and photographs verified by The New York Times show that Iran repeatedly targeted installations at Erbil International Airport, Iraq, over Saturday and Sunday. Smoke and flames were seen rising from the area. Satellite imagery on Sunday morning showed four buildings damaged or destroyed, with fires still burning into Monday morning.
Meanwhile, satellite imagery from Jebel Ali Port in Dubai shows smoke emanating from a large building within the fenced Navy recreation area. Although not an official base, the port is among the most frequently used by the US Navy in the region. The attack also targeted the US diplomatic mission.
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