BOOM IN BAHRAIN: IRAN LEVELS US NAVAL BASE, PENTAGON CHIEF SCREAMS “THEY BLEW THE HELL OUT OF US!”
GREATRIBUNETVNEWS –IRAN has pounded the heart of American power in the Middle East, reducing the US Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain to rubble.
In a shocking, rare confession, acting US Navy Secretary Hung Cao admitted the catastrophic damage on Thursday, September 10, 2026.
“They blew the hell out of Bahrain,” Cao told The Epoch Times — laying bare the humiliating blow to US Naval Support Activity Bahrain.
The admission corroborates Iran’s claim that it unleashed a massive drone barrage on Sheikh Isa Air Base, targeting radar sites and US troop concentrations in retaliation for US strikes on southern Iran.
Tehran is not backing down. Washington is counting its losses. The Gulf is on fire.
The comments reportedly referred to Naval Support Activity Bahrain, which serves as the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet and plays a critical role in American naval operations across the Middle East.
Cao said the damage to the facility had also affected operations involving the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, raising questions about the US Navy’s ability to use the base to support future high-intensity deployments.
He indicated that the Navy was still assessing how to address the situation and whether it would eventually return to the facility for major operations.
“I have a task force that’s looking at that,” Cao said when asked whether the Navy would need to resume operations at the Bahrain facility to sustain deployments similar to the Lincoln’s recent mission.
The reported acknowledgment comes after open-source investigators and satellite imagery had indicated that Iranian strikes caused significant damage to US military infrastructure in Bahrain earlier in the war.
The Navy’s top uniformed officer, Admiral Daryl Caudle, had previously said that the service would not return to Naval Support Activity Bahrain “anytime soon” because of the damage sustained by the facility.
The development has significant implications for US military operations in the region because Bahrain has long served as an important logistical and operational hub for the US Navy.
The facility’s disruption has also coincided with the conclusion of an unusually lengthy deployment by the USS Abraham Lincoln.
The aircraft carrier spent almost nine months deployed, including approximately 200 days in a combat zone, before arriving at Laem Chabang in Thailand earlier this month.
The extended deployment has attracted scrutiny from members of Congress and families of sailors, particularly following reports of shortages involving food and water, plumbing problems and declining morale aboard the carrier.
There have also been concerns about the mental health of sailors and the potential risk of self-harm following the prolonged period at sea and in a combat environment.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, however, rejected reports portraying conditions aboard the carrier as being severely degraded, saying claims about the situation had been “completely misrepresented.”
The condition of the Bahrain facility is nevertheless emerging as a separate concern for the Navy, particularly as the US seeks to maintain its ability to conduct sustained military operations in the Middle East.
Cao has served as acting Navy secretary since April 22 after taking over the leadership position on an interim basis.
President Donald Trump nominated Cao on September 1 to become the Navy secretary on a permanent basis.
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