Exclusive footage reveals extent of Iranian attacks on U.S. base in Kuwait

Seven months into the conflict, CBS News obtained exclusive video footage showing the moment Iranian forces struck Camp Buehring, a major American military installation in Kuwait situated roughly 25 miles from the Iraqi border. The footage, recorded by someone stationed at the base, captures ballistic missiles and drones impacting the compound, along with what multiple U.S. service members identified as Iranian F-5 fighter jets conducting low-altitude passes. The videos show visible damage to buildings and military equipment scattered across the installation.

Camp Buehring had served for more than two decades as a critical staging ground for American forces operating throughout the Middle East. Before the war began, the Pentagon had implemented what military officials called the "get off the X" strategy—moving roughly 90 percent of American personnel away from vulnerable positions and out of range of Iranian fire. Of the approximately 7,000 troops normally stationed there, most had been relocated elsewhere in Kuwait. Yet when Iranian attacks commenced, a contingent of more than 100 soldiers remained behind, tasked with maintaining the base's essential operations.

The decision to keep that skeleton crew proved immediately consequential. Soldiers defending the installation found themselves running critically short on .50-caliber ammunition as Iranian missiles and drones forced them into bunkers repeatedly. A senior Army logistics official confirmed to CBS News that concerns extended beyond ammunition to include shortages of what military planners call "exquisite" munitions—specialized systems like Patriot missile batteries. One service member who witnessed the attacks described the intensity of the assault: Iranian jets came in so low that he could see the pilots' helmets before they struck the base and withdrew. "They hit us bad," the soldier told CBS News on condition of anonymity due to military media restrictions. "It was horrible. There were a lot of brave guys who stayed to fight there—and people at home don't know what happened."

The combination of sustained Iranian fire and ammunition shortages, coupled with fears that the isolated base could not manage a mass-casualty event if attacks intensified, led military leadership to make a difficult choice. The decision was to evacuate. Soldiers loaded their vehicles with whatever equipment they could carry and drove at night deep into the Kuwaiti desert, establishing remote forward operating bases where they would remain indefinitely. The base itself, in the words of one soldier, "got demolished."

The evacuation itself brought unexpected dangers. In late April, two soldiers stationed at the desert FOBs were struck by lightning during sandstorms—one suffering severe burns, the other a ruptured eardrum. Army leaders had been attempting to move troops out of the area more quickly, but the process had not moved fast enough to prevent the injuries. By May, the remaining soldiers relocated again, first to Camp Arifjan in Kuwait and then to other positions both within and outside the Middle East. No service members were killed by enemy fire at Camp Buehring or at the forward operating bases, but the toll of the evacuation and the conditions soldiers endured remained real.

The Pentagon declined to comment on the specific attacks at Camp Buehring, though Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had stated in March that the military's repositioning of forces—moving over 90 percent of American personnel off vulnerable bases—was designed to prevent exactly this kind of casualty scenario. The Defense Department's inspector general later reported that Iranian forces had damaged or destroyed 81 aircraft, including drones, since February. A Congressional Research Service report documented equipment losses valued at up to $3.7 billion, including nearly 60 aircraft. Strikes had been reported at bases across Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan, yet visual documentation of the damage remained scarce until CBS News obtained this footage.

The Camp Buehring videos offer rare concrete evidence of what American forces faced during the opening phase of the conflict—the coordination of multiple weapon systems, the speed and intensity of the assault, and the logistical strain it placed on defenders. One soldier's question lingered unanswered: "How come no one came to reinforce us?" The footage authenticated through metadata analysis and cross-referenced with photographs of the damage, stands as a window into decisions made under fire and the human cost of those choices.