The Pentagon is stacking decks in the Persian Gulf theater — again. The U.S. is reportedly sending a third aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East along with an amphibious force carrying about 2,000 Marines, CNBC reported Friday, citing Al Jazeera and the Wall Street Journal.
The USS Theodore Roosevelt group and the Makin Island amphibious force have left San Diego, a U.S. official told Al Jazeera. Separately, the Journal said the full buildup is expected to be complete by November — the same month President Donald Trump recently told aides he expects to resume bombing Iran, according to the paper.
That is a force-posture move, not just Oval Office talk. The war is in its eighth month and stuck in a stalemate: indirect talks stalled after Washington rejected Iran’s proposal to reopen Hormuz in exchange for lifting the U.S. blockade, keeping oil prices above pre-war levels.
Pressure points keep flashing. The Saudi-led coalition accused Iran-backed Houthis of a drone strike on a Medina power station supplying the Prophet’s Mosque (Houthis denied it). Treasury widened sanctions on Iran’s auto and rail sectors. UKMTO said a tanker was hit by an unknown projectile in Hormuz on Thursday. And Secretary of State Marco Rubio reportedly ordered Iran’s U.N. delegation to leave New York early after Qatari-mediated talks failed.
Sources: CNBC
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