US to send third aircraft carrier towards Iran: US official to Al Jazeera

Massive US military deployment in the Middle East includes 50,000 troops, F-35s and Marines to pressure Tehran.The United States is deploying a third US aircraft carrier to the waters around Iran, a US official told Al Jazeera, as the war enters its eighth month and both sides weigh escalation and diplomatic engagement.The official told Al Jazeera that the USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group left its San Diego base on Sunday, bound for the region, followed a day later by the Makin Island Marine Expeditionary Force, carrying more than 2,000 Marines.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Iranians stock up on food and medicine as fears of new US fighting growlist 2 of 3US-Iran talks in New York: What’s the latest?list 3 of 3Trump administration ‘must be changed’: Iran’s IRGC appeals to US votersend of listBy the end of November, the official said, three aircraft carriers and two amphibious landing groups will be positioned around Iran.The official said the concentration of force would hand President Donald Trump a wider menu of options if he decides to act.Al Jazeera’s Tanya Noury, reporting from Washington, said the new deployment includes thousands of troops and extra air power, including F-35 fighter jets, layered on top of the roughly 50,000 US service members already stationed in the region.The goal, Noury said, citing sources inside the Pentagon and White House, is to keep military options “on the table” for Trump regardless of how diplomacy unfolds, with the Pentagon not planning to withdraw any assets even if an agreement with Iran is reached. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said forces are “ready to go” should Trump order new strikes.Trump himself has kept the threat alive in public. He told Fox News he believes the US is “going to win the war” with Iran “very soon”, while suggesting in other remarks that a return to military action “is possible” but something he would rather not spell out before November’s midterm elections.