New Delhi: In a strategic shift, the United States has withdrawn nearly 40 military aircraft from its Al-Udeid air base in Qatar over the past two weeks, satellite imagery accessed by India Today reveal.
Imagery from Planet Labs PBC show a dramatic reduction in the number of American warplanes stationed at facility between June 5 and June 19. What was once a crowded apron with nearly 40 aircrafts, including C-130 Hercules transport planes and advanced reconnaissance jets, refuelling tankers and surveillance planes, now appears deserted with about three aircrafts remaining.
Meanwhile, the US embassy in Qatar announced on Thursday that access to the Al-Udeid base would be limited “out of an abundance of caution and in light of ongoing regional hostilities,” and urged personnel to “exercise increased vigilance.”
Satellite images of Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, one of the U.S. Air Force’s most important bases in the Middle East, appear to show the base now completely abandoned. The base, which regularly maintains dozens of military aircraft, including aerial-refueling tankers, surveillance… pic.twitter.com/k102I9raP7
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) June 18, 2025
Al-Udeid base under radar
The Al-Udeid base, long considered Washington’s most important military outpost in the Gulf, has played a crucial role in US operations in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.
The White House is reportedly assessing military and diplomatic responses to the evolving Iran-Israel crisis. Over 40,000 US troops currently deployed across the region. This number spiked up to 43,000 in October due to previous flare up of tensions between Iran and Israel. The Pentagon has refused to comment on specifics.
However, a US Embassy advisory in Doha has acknowledged “heightened regional threats” and increased security protocols at the base. This was also in response to the repeated Houthi attacks on commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea.
American forces across the Middle East are on heightened alert, and military families have been given the option to voluntarily leave bases as a precaution against possible Iranian retaliation.
Trump weighs US role
US President Donald Trump is expected to decide within the next two weeks whether the United States will join Israel’s military campaign against Iran, as tensions continue to escalate across the region.
White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt has said that Trump still sees a narrow diplomatic window to address US and Israeli concerns over Iran’s nuclear program. “Based on the fact that there’s a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,” Leavitt said, quoting Trump.
This decision comes in the wake of increasing Iranian aggression, including the recent missile strike on a hospital that wounded at least 40 people.
In response, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz issued a sharp warning claiming that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “cannot continue to exist. “Katz accused Khamenei of pursuing Israel’s destruction and stated that the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) had been instructed accordingly.”
