U.S. Marine Corps troops have arrived in the Gulf amid rising speculation about ground operations in Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury.
As per U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli arrived in its area of responsibility on Friday. The warship serves as the flagship for the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group / 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, which comprises roughly about 3,500 sailors and Marines, and transport and strike fighter jets.
The announcement came as speculation mounts that President Trump is weighing a number of potential operations involving troops on the ground, involving a potential invasion of Kharg Island, the sea port used as an export hub for the vast majority of Iran’s oil, including storage for up to 30 million barrels.
President Trump reportedly told a U.K. national newspaper his “preference would be to take the oil” in Iran. Meanwhile a U.S. newspaper has reported he was considering an operation to confiscate Iran’s uranium.
There has also been speculation that some form of ground operation would be required to support any bid to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping without Iranian consent.
The U.S. continues to maintain that productive negotiations are ongoing with Iran, both directly and via Pakistan; President Trump today claimed Iran had agreed to allow 20 ships carrying oil through the Strait starting this morning (Monday).
However, this claim is as-yet unverified: Iran has accused the U.S. of plotting a land assault while appearing to seek negotiations.
Yesterday (Sunday) Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf reportedly said Iranian forces were “waiting” for U.S. ground troops to arrive so they could “rain fire upon them”.
As of the start of this week the U.S. claims to have struck more than 11,000 targets in Iran and to have flown a similar number of combat missions over the country. It says it has damaged or destroyed in excess of 150 Iranian Navy vessels.
- You can read the latest CENTCOM updates on its X social media feed