Donald Trump has ordered military personnel from the largest US military base in the Middle East to leave no later than tonight as tensions in Iran boil over.
Some soldiers at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar will leave today as a precautionary measure after warnings from Tehran that it would target US bases in the region if Trump intervenes to protect Iranian protesters.
Al Udeid, the largest US military installation in the Middle East, houses around 10,000 troops and serves as headquarters for US Central Command.
Not all will leave, but the base last moved many troops in summer 2025 when the US struck nuclear sites in Iran.
The US official described the move at the base as a precautionary measure. Qatar said that the measures were being ‘undertaken in response to the current regional tensions’.
It comes as Trump’s national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran following the deaths of more than 2,000 peaceful protesters.
‘The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,’ Trump told reporters on Air Force One earlier this week.
Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: ‘If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.’
Anonymous sources have told news agencies that this could include cyber-attacks and direct strikes by the US or Israel.
Tehran has warned that the US military and Israel would be ‘legitimate targets’ if America uses force to protect demonstrators.
Dr Bamo Nouri, a professor in International Relations at the University of West London, told Metro today that the reduction of US personnel in Qatar is a strategic and operational calculation – not a retreat.
‘US planners are acutely aware that if Iran were attacked, it would almost certainly respond, and history shows that response would most likely involve strikes on nearby US military bases rather than on the US mainland,’ he said.
‘Adjusting troop levels is therefore a precautionary move to reduce vulnerability and protect personnel in a moment of heightened risk, reflecting realism about how Iran has behaved in past confrontations rather than any loss of US commitment to the region.
‘A scenario involving significant US casualties would also undermine the “America First” approach associated with Donald Trump, particularly at a time when domestic political and economic pressures in the United States are already high, and public tolerance for costly foreign entanglements is low.’
‘These protests are Iranian-led – but international intervention may no longer be optional’
Dr Katayoun Shahandeh, a lecturer at the SOAS Centre for Iranian Studies at the University of London, told Metro that most Iranians do not want foreign intervention, but at this point, it may be unavoidable.
‘The protest movement has been, from the start, insistently Iranian-led – rooted in domestic demands for dignity, justice, and political agency,’ she explained.
‘That said, the current moment is exceptional. With conservative estimates now exceeding 2,500 killed, widespread detentions, and individuals such as Erfan Soltani and others reportedly being prepared for execution, many Iranians increasingly feel that international intervention is no longer optional but necessary.
‘This is not about inviting a foreign power to “take over” the struggle but about preventing the complete annihilation of a movement that has already paid an extraordinary human cost.’
There are concerns that any escalation involving the United States would pull focus from what the protests are about – political change – and turn the focus to negotiation on nuclear capabilities, like last summer.
‘If so, Iranians risk once again finding that their struggle for systemic change is subordinated to external strategic priorities – with protester lives used as leverage rather than genuinely protected,’ Dr Shahandeh added.
‘The greater risk may be that inaction by the international community enables the regime to outlast the movement once again, rather than protecting Iranian sovereignty or stability.’
Tensions simmer in Greenland
In addition to Iran, the US is focusing attention on Greenland, which Trump has claimed can only be protected from China and Russia by the US.
Denmark has increased its military presence in and around Greenland, with rumours of a NATO deployment circulating today.
In a post on Truth Social today, Trump wrote: ‘Militarily, without the vast power of the United States, much of which I built during my first term, and am now bringing to a new and even higher level, Nato would not be an effective force or deterrent – not even close!
‘They know that, and so do I. NATO becomes far more formidable and effective with Greenland in the hands of the United States. Anything less than that is unacceptable.’
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