US military bases in Gulf 'useless' after Iranian strikes, experts say

At least a dozen US military sites across the Gulf region have been so badly damaged by Iran's retaliation to US and Israeli attacks that their presence now creates significantly more vulnerabilities than it does benefits, a slate of Middle East experts argued on Thursday. 

The original revelation about the state of the bases was first reported in The New York Times last month, in which they were described as "all but uninhabitable".

The Trump administration has yet to acknowledge the extent of the damage sustained. 

Access to these sites - some of which are logistical hubs and not necessarily active bases - is tightly controlled by both the Pentagon and the Gulf states themselves: Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, and Oman.

Last month, they banned the photography and dissemination of any videos of missiles in their skies, leading many to speculate whether the motive was to shield US bases as they launched attacks on Iran.

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