Where U.S. troops are stationed in the Middle East

A U.S. Army soldier guardhouse on the perimeter of the International Zone in Baghdad, Iraq, in May 2021. Photo: John Moore/Getty Images

With the Israel-Hamas war escalating, the United States risks becoming involved in a larger conflict that could entangle some of the more than 40,000 U.S. military personnel based across the region.

Why it matters: U.S. troops and military contractors in Iraq and Syria have been targeted in over a dozen attacks by Iranian-backed militia groups since Hamas' surprise attack against Israeli civilians and soldiers on Oct. 7.

• Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has warned of the "prospect of a significant escalation of attacks on our troops and our people throughout the region."
• Between the lines: The attacks, as well as a wider war, could reverse efforts in recent years to reduce the U.S. presence in the Middle East as part of a strategic pivot to toward the Pacific.

U.S. troops and contractors in the Middle East
Approximate count according to the latest available data; As of October 2023

Bubble map of the Middle East showing the distribution of roughly 45,400 U.S. troops and contractors stationed in 11 countries. The U.S. has the most troops in Kuwait, at about 13,500, followed by Bahrain at 9,000 and Qatar at 8,000. There is at least one U.S. base in Israel and a few hundred troops in Oman.

KUWAIT 13,500
KUWAIT 13,500
BAHRAIN 9,000
BAHRAIN 9,000
APPROX. TOTAL 45,400
SAUDI ARABIA 2,700
SAUDI ARABIA 2,700
UAE 3,500
UAE 3,500
JORDAN 2,936
JORDAN 2,936
IRAQ 2,500
IRAQ 2,500
TURKEY 1,885
TURKEY 1,885
SYRIA 900
SYRIA 900
QATAR 8,000
QATAR 8,000
OMAN A few hundred
OMAN A few hundred
ISRAEL Unclear, but U.S. has
at least one base
ISRAEL Unclear, but U.S. has
at least one base






Data: Axios research; Map: Kavya Beheraj/Axios
Troops on the move
The Department of Defense has dispatched or prepared for deployment thousands of personnel.

• Those include two aircraft carrier groups with roughly 7,500 personnel each and two amphibious Navy ships carrying thousands of Marines.
• Another ship, the USS Carney, intercepted three missiles over the Red Sea that were "potentially" aimed at targets in Israel.
• Austin also placed approximately 2,000 personnel on a heightened state of readiness.

State of play: The troops being sent to the region are not expected to serve in combat roles, though the White House has discussed the possibility of using military force if Lebanon-based Hezbollah opens a new front in the war, Axios' Barak Ravid first reported.

Troops under fire: Iraq and Syria
Personnel at a U.S. military outpost in Syria have been targeted by at least three drone and missile attacks, while rocket and drone attacks have targeted U.S. personnel based in Iraq at least 10 times since Oct. 17, per the Pentagon.

• No U.S. soldiers have been killed, but at least 21 suffered what the DoD described as minor injuries.

Syria: Approximately 900 soldiers are in Syria to conduct counterterrorism operations against ISIS.

• Approximately 100 of those are supporting the Free Syrian Army, a coalition of opposition militias in the ongoing Syrian civil war.

Iraq: DoD has not publicly disclosed exactly how many soldiers are in Iraq, but it said in 2021 that the number of personnel dropped to 2,500.

• U.S. and Iraqi officials in July 2021 agreed to shift the U.S. military presence in the country to a purely non-combat advisory role, marking the official end of the U.S. combat mission there.
• Soldiers now train and advise Iraqi Armed Forces and provide intelligence in their ongoing fight against ISIS.

Troops in Israel and Jordan
Israel: It's unclear how many U.S. troops are based in Israel, but the U.S. maintains at least one military base in the country.

• The classified base, code-named "Site 512," is believed to house a radar surveillance system that can detect and track ballistic missile threats against the U.S.

Jordan: Though the presence of the U.S. military is a sensitive domestic issue in Jordanian politics, there were around 2,900 personnel there as of June 2023 at the request of the Jordanian government.

• They were deployed there to support Jordan's operations against ISIS, to enhance its security and to promote regional stability.
• Jordanian air bases, particularly, have been important for U.S. intelligence missions in Syria and Iraq.

Qatar hosts U.S. troops and Hamas leaders
Qatar: As another major non-NATO ally, Qatar is crucial to the U.S.' military strategy in the region.

• At least 8,000 U.S. forces are deployed to the large Al Udeid Air Base southwest of Doha, which hosts the regional headquarters for U.S. Central Command.
• The air base is the U.S.' largest military installation in the Middle East, though it also houses Qatar's air force and air forces from other countries, including the U.K.

The flipside: Qatar has also allowed a Hamas political office to operate in Doha for over a decade. It houses several high-ranking Hamas officials, including the organization's supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh.

• Qatar has been heavily criticized for hosting the office, but it maintains that doing so allows it to mediate relations with Hamas and the West and may help foster Israeli-Palestinian peace.
• However, U.S. officials recently said Qatar may be open to reconsidering Hamas' presence in the country once the more than 200 hostages captured by the by the Palestinian militant group are freed, according to the Washington Post.

Major hubs in the Gulf and Turkey
Bahrain: As of 2022, there were over 9,000 U.S. military personnel assigned to NSA Bahrain, a U.S. naval base that is the headquarters of the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and the U.S. Fifth Fleet.

• It is the U.S.' only permanent shore naval base in the Middle East and Bahrain's Khalifa bin Salman Port is one of the few facilities in the Gulf that can accommodate U.S. aircraft carriers and amphibious ships.
• Bahrain, too, has been designated a major non-NATO ally, allowing it to purchase certain arms and conduct defense research with the U.S.

U.S Navy personnel aboard a boat off the coast of Bahrain's Salman port in May 2013. Photo: Marwan Naamani/AFP via Getty Images
Kuwait: Thousands of U.S. forces have been stationed in Kuwait since 1991 when a multinational coalition led by the U.S. expelled Iraqi forces from the country as part of the first Gulf War.

• The country also served a major logistics base for U.S. and coalition forces during the Iraq War.
• In 2021, there were 13,500 U.S. personnel and thousands of pieces of equipment in Kuwait, primarily at Camp Arifjan and Ali al-Salem Air Base.
• The country, which is a major non-NATO ally, also hosts thousands of German, Japanese and South Korean troops.

U.S. Air Force personnel at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar in 2002. Photo: Cherie A. Thurlby/USAF/Getty Images
Saudi Arabia: In December 2022, there were over 2,700 U.S. troops stationed in Saudi Arabia to train, advise and assist its armed forces and to protect U.S. interests in the region from Iran and its proxies.

• The soldiers there maintain air and missile defense systems and support the operation of military aircraft, according to the White House.
• Worth noting: The Biden administration in 2021 ended U.S. support for Saudi Arabia's offensive operations against the Yemen-based and Iran-back Houthi rebels, though the U.S. still provides defensive support.

United Arab Emirates: The UAE has been a key U.S. ally in the Middle East for years, hosting up to 3,500 U.S. personnel.

• They are primarily based at Al Dhafra Air Base, which holds the Gulf Air Warfare Center — a regional air and missile defense training hub jointly operated by the UAE and the U.S.
• The country's ports are also critical for the U.S. Navy, as they collectively host more ships than any other port outside the U.S.

Oman: There are a few hundred troops stationed in Oman, primarily from the Air Force.

• The country allows the Air Force to conduct thousands of overflights and hundreds of landings each year, while U.S. vessels are able to make 80 port calls annually. Port access was expanded in 2019.
• Earlier this year, the U.S. transferred an additional destroyer and fighter jets near Oman in response to the Iranian Navy seizing merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman.

Turkey: The U.S. has over 1,000 troops in Turkey — a NATO member — primarily at an air base near the city of Adana and an air station near Izmir.

Go deeper ...

• How many U.S. citizens live in Israel, Gaza and the wider region
• What to know about Hezbollah's ties to Iran and threat to Israel
• What to know about the Gaza Strip and who controls it
• What to know about Hamas' tunnel system beneath Gaza
• What to know about Israel's military strength

Sponsored Content by North Myrtle Beach
An Unforgettable Four-Day Family Guide to North Myrtle Beach

Experience four days of unforgettable fun and unique adventures with our North Myrtle Beach family itinerary. Read more.


Go deeper

• Kelly Tyko

32 mins ago -Economy
IRS delivers Christmas gift: $1 billion in tax penalties waived

Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios

Days before Christmas, the Internal Revenue Service said it is waiving $1 billion in tax penalties for 4.7 million individuals, businesses and organizations who owe back taxes.

Why it matters: The rare relief is about $200 on average for each affected taxpayer and about 70% of those affected have household incomes below $100,000, the IRS announced Tuesday.

Go deeper (1 min. read)

• Matt Phillips,
• Emily Peck,
• Felix Salmon

Updated 58 mins ago -Economy
Six charts that defined the markets in 2023

Data: FactSet, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis; Chart: Axios Visuals
America's economic growth vastly outpaced expectations this year.

Why it matters: The surprising pep in the economy helped keep corporate profits up and unemployment way down.

Go deeper (3 min. read)

• Brady Dale
  , author of
  Axios Crypto

1 hour ago -Business
From NFTs to XRP: the biggest crypto stories of 2023

Photo illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios. Photo: Yuki Iwamura/Bloomberg via Getty Images

2023 was a brutal year in the cryptocurrency industry, one in which the worst miscreants of the 2021 boom by and large met justice.

Why it matters: With bitcoin on the rebound and macro conditions improving, digital assets have a chance to make a different set of headlines in 2024 — but it remains to be seen if lessons have been learned, either by entrepreneurs or financial cops.

Source: https://www.axios.com/2023/10/31/american-troops-middle-east-israel-palestine