US troops a liability for some Kuwaitis amid Iran fury: ‘we’re paying the price’

Read the original at South China Morning Post ↗
Cite

France-Presse, A. (2026, August 25). US troops a liability for some Kuwaitis amid Iran fury: ‘we’re paying the price’. South China Morning Post. https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3365215/us-troops-liability-some-kuwaitis-amid-iran-fury-were-paying-price?utm_source=rss_feed

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

South China Morning Post · collected 2026-08-25 · by Agence France-Presse

Quick Summary

A Kuwaiti national, Ghanim Alsulaimani, expresses mixed feelings towards US troops stationed in his country, recalling how they liberated Kuwait from Iraqi invasion decades ago but now seeing them as a liability due to their presence in Tehran's line of fire during the US-Iran war. Iran and its allies have targeted civilian infrastructure and American bases in Kuwait with barrages since February, putting pressure on the country's economy. Kuwait is particularly vulnerable due to its reliance on oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been closed by Iran. Alsulaimani remains supportive of the US presence despite stalled peace talks affecting Gulf economies.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-08-25, using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the same event (that is the story summary below).

AI analysis runs on qwen2.5:14b, locally

Story summary

Some Kuwaitis are seeing American troops as a liability rather than an asset due to their presence in the country, which has made it a target for Iranian attacks. Ghanim Alsulaimani, a Kuwaiti national, believes that the US troops have put his country "in a difficult economic position" after Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, which is crucial for Kuwait's oil exports. Since late February, Iran and its allies have launched barrages on Kuwait, targeting civilian infrastructure, water desalination plants, energy installations, and bases hosting American troops. Alsulaimani continues to support the US despite the risks, while others in Kuwait are expressing frustration with the US presence. Meanwhile, new numbers released by the Pentagon show that 60 additional US service members have been injured in the war with Iran, bringing the total number of wounded or killed to 776 troops.

Written for “US Troops Injured in Iraq War” on 2026-10-16, grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 US Troops Injured in Iraq War
World · 2 article(s) covering the same event. See how they differ ↓

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Straits Times
⚖️ Leans left 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 4 📰 publisher trust 60
“Article A describes a statement from US President Donald Trump on August 20, while Article B discusses the consequences of that action six days later and mentions a war that started 'six months into' a conflict”
CBS News
⚖️ Leans left 🔴 12% hedged 5 of 41 📰 publisher trust 66
“Article A discusses Iran's trade ties and economic warfare, while Article B mentions the US-Iran war and its impact on Kuwait”
The Independent
⚖️ Leans strongly right further right than this 🔴 7% hedged 4 of 56 📰 publisher trust 59
“Article A describes US sanctions against Iran, while Article B discusses Kuwait's concern about being targeted due to hosting US troops during a war with Iran”
ABC News (US)
⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 5 📰 publisher trust 59
“Article A discusses a threat from Iran and a warning about oil exports, while Article B focuses on Kuwaitis' perception of US troops as a liability due to their presence in Kuwait amid the US-Iran war”
The Intercept
⚖️ Leans left 🔴 9% hedged 7 of 76 📰 publisher trust 97
“Both articles mention the US-Iran war and report on casualties/injuries to US troops, with a similar timeframe (6 months into the war), suggesting they are reporting on the same incident.”
The Independent
⚖️ leaning not scored 🔴 20% hedged 7 of 35 📰 publisher trust 59
“Article A reports on casualty data for US service members since the conflict began, while Article B discusses the impact of the US-Iran war on Kuwaitis and their perception of US troops as a liability”
The Hindu
⚖️ Leans strongly left further left than this 🔴 0% hedged 0 of 8 📰 publisher trust 60
“Article A mentions six months into the US-Iran war, while Article B specifically dates the conflict to late February, implying different timeframes for their respective descriptions”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
6
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 6 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
64/100
South China Morning Post's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
2
World
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-08-25 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

South China Morning Post · 2432 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Agence France-Presse
173 article(s) here · 0 carrying a prediction
🔮 The 27-nation European Union wants an agreement by Christmas, worried that any future deal-making will be derailed by potential Eurosceptic wins across the bloc, including in France where the far-right’s Marine Le Pen is favoured in opinion polls.
🔮 Musk suggests US government behind any slowdown in Ukraine’s Starshield Kyiv’s forces use the satellite communications system to hit Russian-occupied territory and operate interceptor drones SpaceX boss Elon Musk said on Wednesday that any disruptions reported by Ukraine in using the Starshield satellite communications system would be the responsibility of the US government, not his company.
🔮 Japan, US review military liberty policies after Okinawa killing Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi says high-level talks will target off-base curfew enforcement and joint patrols after a US marine’s arrest
🔮 Houthi official has warned the US it would receive a “painful response” if it entered the war in Yemen, where Saudi Arabia has reportedly requested Washington’s help in dealing with the group as it weathers repeated attacks.
🔮 The initiative has drawn concerns that increased traffic could accelerate Arctic ice loss.
🔮 ‘Frustrating would be one word,’ a CEO says, as US manufacturers struggle with ballooning costs and persistent uncertainty For Doug Rende, who runs an aluminium product manufacturer in the US state of Ohio, President Donald Trump’s tariffs have meant millions of dollars more in annual costs – and recently, the Iran war has made shipments even more expensive.
🔮 A businessman called Hitler Mussolini Simeon Flores has been elected the mayor of a remote district in the Peruvian Andes, according to local election data.
🔮 Trump casts doubt on Pentagon plan to live stream Fort Hood shooter’s execution Bipartisan outrage and UN condemnation have followed Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth’s plan to stream Nidal Hasan’s death sentence Nidal Hasan’s execution – scheduled for December 3 at Fort Hood, Texas, where he gunned down 13 people in 2009 – is set to be the first by a US military firing squad since 1945.
🔮 New York mayor urges Trump to remove ICE after driver with child in car is shot Zohran Mamdani speaks out after ICE wound man with a 5-year-old boy in the back seat New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Thursday he would ask US President Donald Trump to remove federal immigration agents from the city as tensions flared over the latest shooting involving ICE. The New York Police Department said a man had been shot around 4pm in the Marble Hill neighbourhood of the Bronx during an altercation with federal agents. Mamdani and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) later confirmed that the shooting occurred during an operation of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the agency responsible for Trump’s immigration crackdown.
🔮 A Mexican judge is expected to hand down his verdict Thursday in the high-profile murder trial of three men accused of killing two Australian surfers and their American friend in 2024.
Also by Agence France-Presse
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 173 articles by Agence France-Presse →

Topics

American Americans Iran Kuwait Kuwaitis

Subjects

Iran GPE · 3× Kuwait GPE · 3× American NORP · 2× Kuwaitis NORP · 2× Americans NORP · 1× Ghanim Alsulaimani PERSON · 1× Iraqi NORP · 1× Kuwaiti NORP · 1× Tehran GPE · 1× the Islamic Republic GPE · 1×

Narrative

Since the Middle East conflict first erupted in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, the Islamic Republic and its allies have hammered Kuwait with recurrent barrages. They have targeted civilian infrastructure, including water desalination plants and energy installations, along with bases hosting American troops.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-08-25
2026-08-25 · South China Morning Post
US troops a liability for some Kuwaitis amid Iran fury: ‘we’re paying the price’ · assertive framing

Claims (6 extracted, 0 hedged)

US troops a liability for some Kuwaitis amid Iran fury: ‘we’re paying the price’ asserted
we → pay → price
‘Targeting locations where the Americans are stationed has created fear and anxiety among residents,’ a Kuwaiti national says Like many Kuwaitis, Ghanim Alsulaimani still vividly remembers Iraqi tanks rolling through his hometown when his small Gulf state faced extinction had US troops not liberated it from invasion. asserted
troops → target → invasion
Now, decades later and six months into the US-Iran war, some are seeing those same American troops as more of a liability than an asset, as their presence has put Kuwait in Tehran’s line of fire. asserted
presence → see → fire
Since the Middle East conflict first erupted in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, the Islamic Republic and its allies have hammered Kuwait with recurrent barrages. They have targeted civilian infrastructure, including water desalination plants and energy installations, along with bases hosting American troops. asserted
They → erupt → troops
Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz has put Kuwait, which is locked into the waterway and relies on oil exports for revenue, in a difficult economic position. asserted
which → put → position
Yet Alsulaimani continues to stand by the United States, even as talks to end the war have stalled, weighing on Gulf economies. asserted
talks → continue → economies
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support