New York, March 29 The Pentagon is preparing for weeks of ground operations in Iran, as thousands of US soldiers and Marines arrive in the Middle East for what could become a dangerous new phase of the war should US President Donald Trump choose to escalate, The Washington Post reported.
Any potential ground operation would fall short of a full-scale invasion and could instead involve raids by a mixture of Special Operations forces and conventional infantry troops, the newspaper quoted officials as saying on the condition of anonymity.
Such a mission could expose US personnel to an array of threats, including Iranian drones and missiles, ground fire and improvised explosives, the report noted, adding the Trump administration in recent days has vacillated between declaring that the war is winding down and threatening to amplify it.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted on Friday the United States "can achieve all of our objectives without ground troops," but the Post said planning is advanced, with one official saying: "This is not last-minute planning."
Meanwhile, The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that a task force of 3,500 marines and sailors arrived in the Middle East.
"US Sailors and Marines aboard USS Tripoli (LHA 7) arrived in the US Central Command area of responsibility, March 27," CENTCOM said in a brief post on social media platform X on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.
The America-class amphibious assault ship serves as the flagship for the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group / 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit composed of about 3,500 sailors and marines in addition to transport and strike fighter aircraft, as well as amphibious assault and tactical assets, CENTCOM said in the post.
The arrival is part of a broader US military buildup tied to the ongoing war with Iran, with amphibious forces capable of conducting both sea-based strikes and ground operations, online news portal ynetnews.com reported on Saturday, adding such units are typically used for rapid deployments, including securing strategic locations, evacuations or potential assaults on coastal targets.
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