Established in 1996, the Al-Udeid Air Base currently serves as the operational hub for over 10,000 American military troops.
A United States soldier stationed in the Qatar-based Al Udeid Air Base died in a non-combat-related incident over the weekend, according to an official statement.
“The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Inherent Resolve,” the defence department confirmed on Sunday.
The US Department of Defense officially identified the individual as Staff Sgt. Felix A. Berrios from Texas Houston who died on November 3 at the military base.
“The incident is under investigation,” the statement added.
The 33-year-old soldier was actively supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, the US military’s fight against the Islamic State, or ISIS, which essentially led intervention campaigns in both Iraq and Syria, and a linked operation in Libya.
Berrios was assigned to the 25th Signal Battalion within the 160th Signal Brigade, a part of the US Army Network Enterprise Technology Command (NETCOM), which operates and defends the computer networks of the United States Army.
Qatar is home to the largest US military base in the Middle East, the Al-Udeid Air Base. The facility also includes CENTCOM’s Headquarters, the US Air Force Central Command, and the 379th Air Expeditionary Wing of the US Air Force.
Established in 1996, the Al-Udeid Air Base currently serves as the operational hub for over 10,000 American military troops and supports a fleet of more than 100 aircraft as well as drones.
The Gulf nation has also made a commitment to host the US military at the As Sayliyah Army Base, situated just outside Doha. This base is utilised by US Central Command for the prepositioning of equipment designated for deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As of July 2021, David Vine, a political anthropology professor at the American University in Washington, DC, reported that the US maintained approximately 750 military bases across a minimum of 80 countries. However, the true count could potentially exceed this figure, as not all information is disclosed by the Pentagon.
Japan has the largest number of US bases globally, with 120 currently in operation, closely followed by Germany with 119 and South Korea with 73.