On Friday, October 10, 2025, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stood alongside Qatar’s Minister of Defense, Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, to announce a move set to deepen the military partnership between the United States and Qatar. The two officials revealed that Qatar will finance the construction of a new training facility at Mountain Home Air Force Base in southwestern Idaho—a decision that has sparked a heated debate among political commentators, activists, and ordinary Americans alike.
The new facility, to be built by U.S.-based contractors under the strict oversight of the U.S. military, will serve as a training ground for the Qatari Emiri Air Force. It will house roughly a dozen F-15 fighter jets, newly purchased from the United States, and provide accommodations for Qatari pilots and support staff. According to The Hill, Mountain Home Air Force Base already plays host to Singapore’s F-15SG fighter jets, but this marks the first time a Middle Eastern ally will train its air force personnel on American soil in such a dedicated capacity.
Secretary Hegseth, in his remarks, underscored the strategic importance of this partnership. He praised Qatar’s recent diplomatic role in brokering a tentative ceasefire between Israel and Hamas—a move that has been widely acknowledged as a positive step toward ending the two-year conflict in Gaza. Hegseth said the Idaho facility would “enhance our combined training, increase lethality [and] interoperability.” He emphasized that the location in Elmore County would strengthen the longstanding security relationship between the two nations.
Reuters reported that the idea for such a facility had been in the works for years, with discussions predating the current administration. Qatar’s commitment is substantial: the Gulf nation has pledged to fund the construction and maintenance of the facility for an initial period of ten years. The Qatari Embassy clarified, “Qatar has made an initial 10-year commitment to construct and maintain a dedicated facility within an existing U.S. air base, intended for advanced training and to enhance interoperability.” The spokesperson stressed that this would not be a Qatari-controlled base, but rather a specialized area within the broader U.S. military installation.
Still, the announcement was met with swift backlash from certain quarters, particularly among right-wing commentators and influencers aligned with former President Donald Trump. Laura Loomer, a self-described “proud Islamaphobe” and a prominent Trump supporter, took to X (formerly Twitter) to voice her outrage. “Never thought I’d see Republicans give terror financing Muslims from Qatar a MILITARY BASE on US soil so they can murder Americans,” Loomer posted, echoing a 2017 video of Trump accusing Qatar of funding terrorism. Loomer’s posts didn’t stop there. She continued, “If the GOP continues to Islamify our country and continues to allow funders of Islamic terrorism from Qatar to come into our country, I am not voting in 2026 and won’t be able to encourage others to vote either.”
Loomer’s condemnation went beyond policy critique, suggesting the decision could keep her—and potentially her followers—away from the ballot box in the 2026 midterm elections. She lamented, “I cannot in good conscience make any excuses for the harboring of jihadis. This is where I draw the line.” Loomer’s influence in far-right circles is well documented; in August, her criticism of a program resettling Palestinian refugees in the U.S. was followed by a swift policy reversal, with two lawmakers crediting her activism for the change.
Steve Bannon, former White House chief strategist and a key figure in Trump’s first administration, also weighed in. Speaking to Newsweek, Bannon declared, “There should never be a military base of a foreign power on the sacred soil of America.” His words reflected a broader unease among some conservatives about the optics and security implications of hosting a foreign military—especially from a Muslim-majority nation—on U.S. territory.
The Pentagon, sensing the controversy, moved quickly to clarify the arrangement. Secretary Hegseth posted on X, “The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including today’s announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United States—nor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners.” The Qatari Embassy echoed this sentiment, reiterating that the arrangement was strictly for training purposes and would not transfer any control or ownership of the base to Qatar.
The debate over the Idaho facility is not occurring in a vacuum. It comes on the heels of several high-profile gestures of goodwill between the U.S. and Qatar. In July 2025, the U.S. Department of Defense accepted a Boeing 747-8 from the Qatari government as an “unconditional donation.” The aircraft, once used by Qatar’s royal family, is valued at around $400 million and will be retrofitted for use as Air Force One. More recently, President Trump publicly thanked Qatar for its role in mediating the tentative Gaza ceasefire, posting on Truth Social: “This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen.”
Yet, for Loomer and like-minded critics, these diplomatic overtures are overshadowed by deep-seated suspicions of Qatar’s past. Loomer cited Trump’s own 2017 remarks in which he accused Qatar of terror financing, using them as ammunition against the current policy. Her posts on X were laced with rhetorical questions: “What the hell is going on? Why are we trying to train more Muslims how to fly planes on US soil? Didn’t we already learn our lesson? Why are we encouraging more Islamic infiltration of our country by the funders of HAMAS and the Muslim Brotherhood?”
The controversy has reignited a broader debate about America’s foreign policy priorities, its relationships with Muslim-majority partners, and the balance between national security and international cooperation. Supporters of the administration point to Qatar’s critical role in regional stability, its hosting of the largest U.S. military base in the Middle East, and its willingness to invest in joint training initiatives as evidence of a pragmatic and mutually beneficial alliance.
Opponents, meanwhile, warn of potential risks and question the wisdom of deepening military ties with a country whose past actions have drawn scrutiny. Loomer’s threat to abstain from voting in 2026, and her call to others to do the same, could have unpredictable consequences for the political landscape—especially if her followers heed her call.
As the first shovels break ground in Idaho, the debate over the U.S.-Qatar military partnership is far from settled. The coming months will test whether the benefits of enhanced interoperability and diplomatic goodwill can outweigh the fears and frustrations voiced by some of America’s most vocal political activists.
