Acting U.S. Navy Secretary Hung Cao said Iranian attacks caused extensive damage to Naval Support Activity Bahrain, headquarters of U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and the Fifth Fleet, as the Navy weighs the future of the key Middle East base.

Cao Says Navy Is Weighing Base Future

"They blew the hell out of Bahrain," Cao told The Epoch Times in an interview published Thursday. Discussing the USS Abraham Lincoln's recent deployment, Cao said the damage left the carrier's crew with "no place for them to pull in."

Asked whether U.S. forces need to return to Bahrain, Cao said, "I have a task force that's looking at that," signaling the Navy has not settled on the base's future.

The Navy describes NSA Bahrain as supporting U.S. and coalition forces across Central Command's area. The installation has served as the Fifth Fleet headquarters and a central operational hub in the region.

MarketDash reached out to the Pentagon and the U.S. Navy seeking clarification on Navy Secretary Hung Cao's comments but did not receive an immediate response.

Satellite Images Show Extensive Fifth Fleet Damage

Iran repeatedly targeted Bahrain after the U.S. and Israel began strikes on Iran on Feb. 28. Associated Press analysis of Planet Labs imagery in March showed a major building at the Fifth Fleet base destroyed, two radar radomes destroyed and another building damaged.

The attacks unfolded amid a wider Iranian campaign against U.S. military sites and shipping around the Persian Gulf. Earlier Iranian strikes targeting the Fifth Fleet headquarters had already raised concerns about security and energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.

Bahrain Damage Complicates Wider Gulf Operations

The Navy's top uniformed officer has warned against expecting a quick return. "We're not getting back in there anytime soon," Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle said during an Aug. 31 town hall. "I just want to be completely honest with that."

The damage also complicates U.S. operations around Hormuz. Reuters reported in August that traffic through the strait had fallen sharply from prewar levels as the conflict disrupted commercial shipping

In June, Bahrain reported another Iranian drone attack, while Iran's Revolutionary Guard said it had targeted U.S. military positions in the region.