by Garrison Vance, Natural News:
Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao said in an interview with the Epoch Times that Iranian forces “blew the hell” out of the U.S. naval base in Bahrain.
The remark was made to reporter Ryan Morgan on Thursday, Sept. 10, and represents one of the most direct public acknowledgments by a senior U.S. official of the extent of damage sustained at the installation. The outlet later reported on Cao’s remarks.
The base, Naval Support Activity Bahrain, serves as headquarters for the U.S. Fifth Fleet and has been a central hub for American naval operations in the Middle East. Iranian forces began targeting the installation after U.S. and Israeli forces launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, according to the Epoch Times [1]. Damage to the Fifth Fleet headquarters from a Feb. 28 drone attack has been documented since the early weeks of the conflict [1].
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Cao’s comment contrasts with prior public statements by the administration describing Iran’s attack capabilities as degraded. The remark was reported by The New Republic, which noted that the statement “contradicts the Trump administration’s narrative of total destruction of Iran’s attack capabilities.” No transcript of the interview was released by the Navy, and the statements remain attributed solely to the Epoch Times interview.
Remarks on the USS Abraham Lincoln and Base Reentry
Cao also told the Epoch Times that the Iranian attack left U.S. forces unable to “pull in” the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, according to the report. The carrier has been at sea for months and has been the subject of reporting on poor conditions and low morale among its crew. The USS Lincoln deployed from San Diego on Nov. 21, 2025, and has been operating in the waters of the Middle East since January, assisting in combat operations against Iran since Feb. 28 [2].
Top Navy officials met with family members of deployed sailors and Marines in August to address the stresses of the ongoing duty in the Middle East [2]. The carrier was nearing the nine-month mark of its deployment at that time [2].
Media reports have described resupply problems, sub-standard conditions, and mental health problems given the over-extended deployment [3]. The Navy has said it is making a concerted effort to apply the hard lessons learned from the marathon deployments of the USS Gerald R. Ford and USS Lincoln, according to a video posted by Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle [4].
When asked about any plans to return to the U.S. base in Bahrain, Cao told the Epoch Times: “I have a task force that’s looking at that.” The Navy has not publicly announced a timeline for returning to normal operations at the facility. Earlier in September, the Navy’s chief said the service did not plan to return to the Bahrain base “anytime soon” as clashes with Iran continued [5].
