War in Iran: The United States have suffered far more damage than what Washington is willing to admit

Donald Trump will one day play the transparency card? He has been claiming since the beginning of the war in Iran – on February 28, 2026 during the direct and coordinated attack with Tel Aviv on Tehran, which led to the death of Ayatollah Khamenei – that the United States has the advantage. That Iran is in difficulty. What he did not say is the extent of the damage suffered by the American bases since the beginning of the conflict.

The Washington Post analyzed satellite images of the Middle East over the past two months. Journalists counted 228 American targets hit by Iran on military bases in the region. These include hangars, barracks, fuel depots, radars, communication equipment, and air defense equipment. In total, 15 American bases were targeted, with 217 structures and 11 equipment items hit within them.

The censorship of satellite images remains an obstacle to the truth

To carry out this count – essential since neither the White House nor the Pentagon have communicated about the damages suffered by the United States in this war – journalists from the Washington Post had to rely on Iranian satellite images. This hundred images were obviously verified – notably with lower resolution images provided by European satellites – to ensure they were not altered or fabricated pieces by the Iranian regime for propaganda purposes.

If journalists could not use images from American satellites, it is because the companies that distribute them across the Atlantic have been instructed to no longer make views of the Middle East available – at least not in real-time – a censorship decided in March 2026, about ten days after the beginning of the conflicts, which makes journalistic work, as well as academic analysis by researchers, very difficult.

The United States did not grasp the extent of Iran’s strength

The Washington Post also had the Iranian images analyzed by experts. According to them, the extensive damage visible in satellite reports indicates that the United States largely underestimated Iranian capabilities to strike military bases, especially thanks to their drone arsenal. According to specialists, Washington should have been better prepared, especially by analyzing the evolution of the war and the use of drones made in Ukraine. The Iranian strikes visible on satellite images are surgical. A possible proof of Russian intelligence assistance.

Other American media outlets have tried to count the damage caused by Iran to American bases in the Middle East. None came to this conclusion. However, American authorities remain silent in the face of journalists and elected officials demanding answers. “Nobody knows anything, and it’s not for lack of asking,” recently denounced a member of the American Congress on NBC. However, these damages, and the inability of the United States to prevent them, will end up costing them millions of dollars.

And, if it turns out that the White House did not take the necessary measures to protect its men – including the six soldiers who died on a base in Kuwait at the beginning of March – and the territory of its allies in the region, the political consequences would be even greater.