Pentagon barred Qatar base access to hide Iran war damage, US senator claims

A U.S. senator was recently denied access to the largest military installation in the Middle East, calling it a “cover-up” over the damage suffered during the Iran war .

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., visited the Middle East this week on a Congressional Delegation trip, speaking with Gulf region leaders and visiting American facilities to assess damage done by the Iran war. Murphy was denied access to Al Udeid Air Base , Qatar, which had suffered damage from drone strikes during the conflict.

“They are using every tool they can, including withholding information about damages, slow walking the pace of reports about casualties and denying us access to see the damage as part of a campaign of cover-up, so as to mask the true cost of the war,” Murphy told reporters on Thursday.

The “unprecedented” base denial prepared Murphy, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Defense Appropriations Committee, in the coming days to draft language that would explicitly require the Department of Defense to grant members of Congress access to military bases overseas under all circumstances if needed.

“I don’t have any illusions that that’s going to pass between now and the end of the year, but I think that’ll be a really important part of the discussion around an appropriations bill next year and the defense authorization bill,” he said during the press call.

Prior to his trip, Murphy requested access to the base through a letter and direct appeal to U.S. Central Command leadership. But he was denied access even as the Department of State supported his trip to the region, with the Defense Department saying it was due to previously imposed travel restrictions.

“Senator Murphy’s office was informed before his trip to the Middle East that he would not receive Department of War support to access Al Udeid Air Base, consistent with the Secretary of War’s directive on travel restrictions in the region ordered on March 3, 2026,” a senior Defense Department official told Military Times on Thursday.

“That decision was communicated in advance by the Office of the Secretary of War for Legislative Affairs,” the official continued. “The Department applies the Secretary’s guidance evenly.”

In early March, the State and Defense departments issued travel guidance, calling on Americans to depart areas in the region and updating its travel advisory to recommend against visiting certain countries, including Qatar.

“It is absolutely ordinary for members of Congress to travel to areas of conflict and get to talk directly to the military leaders and the soldiers that are involved in the conflict and see for ourselves the damage that has been done to our bases and equipment,” Murphy said, highlighting how during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars he was able to visit operating bases.

He argued that since Congress decides funding and authorization for war, it is necessary to see the consequences, but he was unable to visit Al Udeid or have a briefing on the war with American military officials while in the region.

On the same day the travel advisory was issued in March, the U.S. embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was hit ​by two Iranians drones, resulting in building damage and a fire. Murphy said that the drones impacted multiple floors of the embassy and part of the space is now “uninhabitable” with permanent damage.

The U.S. previously announced in 2023 plans to build a new embassy compound in Riyadh, which Murphy attributes the lack of repairs to.

Even though no injuries or casualties were reported from the strike, Murphy said that if the attack happened during the day it would have killed many Americans.

“[Secretary of Defense Pete] Hegseth is determined to hide the cost and the consequences of this war from the American public, and it is absolutely outrageous that I and Republican senators are being denied the ability to see the damage for ourselves,” he said.

Cristina Stassis is a reporter covering stories surrounding the defense industry, national security, military/veteran affairs and more. She previously worked as an editorial fellow for Defense News in 2024 where she assisted the newsroom in breaking news across Sightline Media Group.

美国一位参议员最近被拒绝进入中东最大的军事设施，他称这是对伊朗战争期间所遭受损失的“掩盖”。

康涅狄格州民主党参议员克里斯·墨菲本周随国会代表团访问中东，与海湾地区领导人会谈，并走访了美国设施，以评估伊朗战争造成的损失。墨菲被拒绝进入卡塔尔的乌代德空军基地，该基地在冲突中遭受了无人机袭击的破坏。

“他们正在使用一切可能的手段，包括隐瞒损失信息、拖延伤亡报告的发布速度以及拒绝我们查看损失情况，以此作为掩盖战争真实代价的手段，”墨菲周四告诉记者。

这一“史无前例”的基地拒绝让身为参议院外交关系委员会和国防拨款委员会成员的墨菲在接下来的几天里准备起草一份措辞，明确要求国防部在任何情况下，如有必要，都必须允许国会议员进入海外军事基地。

“我并不幻想这项法案会在今年年底前获得通过，但我认为这将是明年拨款法案和国防授权法案讨论中非常重要的一部分，”他在新闻发布会上说。

在出行前，墨菲曾致函美国中央司令部领导层，请求进入该基地。尽管国务院支持他前往该地区，但他仍被拒绝进入，国防部称这是由于此前实施的旅行限制所致。

一位国防部高级官员周四告诉《军事时报》：“在墨菲参议员前往中东之前，他的办公室就已被告知，根据国防部长于2026年3月3日发布的关于该地区旅行限制的指令，他将不会获得战争部的支持以进入乌代德空军基地。”

“这项决定是战争部立法事务办公室事先传达的，”这位官员继续说道。“国防部一视同仁地执行部长的指导意见。”

3月初，国务院和国防部发布了旅行指南，呼吁美国公民离开该地区，并更新了旅行建议，建议不要前往包括卡塔尔在内的某些国家。

“国会议员前往冲突地区，直接与参与冲突的军事领导人和士兵交谈，亲眼看看我们的基地和装备遭受的破坏，这完全是正常的，”墨菲说，并强调了他在伊拉克和阿富汗战争期间如何能够访问作战基地。

他认为，既然国会决定战争的资金和授权，就必须考虑战争的后果，但他在该地区期间既无法访问乌代德，也无法与美国军方官员就战争情况进行简报。

就在3月份发布旅行警告的同一天，美国驻沙特阿拉伯利雅得大使馆遭到两架伊朗无人机袭击，导致建筑物受损并引发火灾。墨菲表示，无人机击中了大使馆的多个楼层，部分区域因永久性损坏而“无法居住”。

美国此前在 2023 年宣布计划在利雅得建造一座新的大使馆建筑群，墨菲认为这是导致缺乏维修的原因。

尽管袭击没有造成人员伤亡，但墨菲表示，如果袭击发生在白天，将会造成许多美国人死亡。

“（国防部长皮特·）赫格塞斯决心向美国公众隐瞒这场战争的代价和后果，我和共和党参议员被剥夺了亲眼目睹战争破坏情况的机会，这绝对是令人愤慨的，”他说。

克里斯蒂娜·斯塔西斯是一位记者，主要报道国防工业、国家安全、军事/退伍军人事务等领域的新闻。她曾于2024年在《防务新闻》担任编辑助理，协助Sightline媒体集团旗下新闻编辑室处理突发新闻。