Qatar to Build “Air Force Facility” at US Base amid “Israeli” Strikes and Trump Pact

By Staff, Agencies

Qatar is set to build and operate an “air force facility” within a United States Air Force base in Idaho, a move the Pentagon says will boost US-backed “lethality” and deepen military cooperation.

The announcement was made Friday by US War Secretary Pete Hegseth, who appeared alongside Qatari Defense Minister Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to unveil the agreement. The deal allows the Qatari Emiri Air Force to construct hangars and squadron buildings for its advanced F-15QA fighter jets at Mountain Home Air Force Base, located about 80 kilometers southeast of Boise.

According to Hegseth, the new installation “will host a contingent of Qatari F-15s and pilots to enhance our combined training, increase lethality, and interoperability”.

The project quickly sparked backlash among right-wing figures, including far-right commentator Laura Loomer, who called it “an abomination”, insisting that “no foreign country should have a military base on US soil”.

Air Force spokesperson Ann Stefanek rejected that description, clarifying that the upcoming facility would not be a “foreign base.” She described it instead as part of a long-standing US initiative to train “allied” forces, comparing it to similar arrangements with Singapore and Germany, both of which maintain detachments at American installations.

Criticism also mounted over the timing of the deal, which closely followed Qatar’s donation of a $400-million Boeing 747-8 aircraft — now designated to become the next Air Force One. US officials, however, claimed that the partnership had been negotiated well before the gift.

The announcement came only weeks after President Donald Trump signed an executive order “assuring the security of the state of Qatar”. The decree followed a series of “Israeli” airstrikes against Doha that triggered widespread condemnation.

Qatar strongly denounced the attacks and rebuked Washington for failing to alert it despite prior knowledge of the planned aggression by its regional ally, the “Israeli” entity.

The new air facility, observers say, underscores Washington’s ongoing strategy of projecting power through allied monarchies, even as tensions rise across the Gulf and Qatar navigates a fragile security environment shaped by “Israeli” hostility and US strategic interests.