At Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, images show destroyed dining facilities, damaged living quarters, burning aircraft and unfinished protective bunkers.

Sources said an Iranian strike damaged an E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft and two KC-135 tankers at Prince Sultan, injuring 10–12 personnel. They also noted that a C-17 transport aircraft was destroyed, although that loss remains unverified.

At Jordan's Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, personnel described months of Iranian missile and drone attacks that damaged F-15s, F-35s, MQ-9 drones, helicopters and critical infrastructure. A July 17–18 strike on military barracks killed three American service members and forced the evacuation of four others.

In Kuwait, troops abandoned sections of Camp Buehring, while personnel in the UAE described digging their own foxholes or sheltering in hotels because of inadequate protection and advance warning.

In Bahrain, military families accused Pentagon leadership of delaying evacuations despite preparations already being in place. Some families reportedly sheltered in parking garages during Iranian attacks, while others spent thousands of dollars arranging their own departures after the airport was damaged.

Across the accounts, service members described poor communication, inadequate supplies, extended deployments and deteriorating morale. Several accused military leadership of failing to prepare for Iranian retaliation or protect personnel and their families.

“They were taking incoming fire so frequently that the alarms couldn’t keep up,” according to one account.

Witnesses said they heard trapped personnel calling for help from burning buildings following the Iranian strike on July 17-18 but were unable to reach them due to inadequate emergency response and preparation.

Sources also described overcrowded facilities and said the death toll could have been significantly higher, as some troops were unable to reach shelters in time.