The United States is ramping up its military presence reportedly in the Middle East, with three additional warships and roughly 2,500 Marines now heading to the region, according to officials familiar with the deployment cited by news agency Reuters.
One US official said the USS Boxer, along with two other amphibious assault ships, has departed from its home port in San Diego. The ships are carrying around 2,500 Marines from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, the Reuters report said. Track US-Iran war LIVE updates
Two additional US officials confirmed the deployment but declined to specify the ships’ exact destination, the report added. All three spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the operation.
The US military build-up comes amid intensifying strikes and increasingly sharp rhetoric from Donald Trump, Israel and Iran, signalling that the conflict is far from winding down.
Iran signals prolonged war
Gen. Ali Mohammad Naini said public sentiment in Iran backs a sustained military campaign. “These people expect the war to continue until the enemy is completely exhausted,” he said, adding, “This war must end when the shadow of war is lifted from the country.”
In a dramatic development, Iranian state television later reported that Naini himself was killed in an airstrike shortly after making those remarks.
Before his death, Naini had insisted Iran’s weapons production remained intact. “We are producing missiles even during war conditions, which is amazing, and there is no particular problem in stockpiling,” he said in comments carried by a state-run newspaper.
His statement directly contradicts claims made a day earlier by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said Iran’s naval forces had been sunk, its air force severely weakened, and its missile production dismantled. Tehran has rejected those assertions.
Iran’s newly appointed Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, in a rare statement had earlier said that Iran’s enemies must have their “security” stripped away.
The comments come as Iran faces sustained US-Israeli strikes that have targeted its military leadership and key infrastructure over the past three weeks.
Tehran threatens global hunt for US, Israeli officials
Iran’s rhetoric has also taken a sharper turn, with threats extending beyond traditional military targets.
Armed forces spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi issued a warning aimed at US and Israeli personnel. “We are watching your cowardly officials and commanders, pilots and wicked soldiers,” he said, according to state TV.
He added, “From now on, based on the information we have on you, the promenades, resorts and tourist and entertainment centres in the world will not be safe for you either.”
