US Navy families evacuated from Bahrain live in uncertainty for six months
Family members of US Navy personnel who were evacuated from Bahrain after the start of the US war with Iran still do not know where they will live next six months later. Many of them are staying in hotels and short-term housing in the United States and other countries, NPR World reports.
The evacuation has dragged on
The military and the US State Department ordered the evacuation of family members on March 2. Initially, Navy command expected the relocation to be short-lived. According to NPR, about 1,300 family members left Bahrain; this figure does not include service members and civilian employees who were also relocated.
About 580 people took part in a virtual meeting with Navy leadership last week. US Fifth Fleet commander Vice Admiral Curt Renshaw acknowledged the difficulties caused by the urgent evacuation and said that existing procedures were not designed for such an extended period. According to him, difficult decisions were postponed because officials did not want to definitively abandon the possibility of families returning to Bahrain.
More permanent housing and expenses
The State Department said that authorized or ordered departure status cannot last longer than 180 days. The department is preparing a decision on the future operating regime of the US Embassy in Bahrain.
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According to information voiced during the virtual meeting, the Navy is offering families the option of choosing a more permanent place of residence while the military determines the future of personnel assigned to Bahrain. In that case, families would receive a housing allowance similar to payments for other military families.
NPR sources expressed concern about additional expenses. A significant number of people have still not received their personal belongings from Bahrain, while some have had to buy clothes and second cars. The Navy also could not answer questions about the status of family members who do not have a US visa to stay in the United States.
The situation at the base
Naval Support Activity Bahrain is an important logistics hub for the US Navy, but aircraft carriers and supply ships currently cannot use it because of the risk of an attack by Iran. Some families want to return to Bahrain, but Mark Cancian, a military analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, believes this will not happen in the near future because of the danger.
