US ground operation in Iran could begin soon - WSJ
US serviceman (Photo: Getty Images)
A US ground operation in Iran is being planned and could potentially begin in the near future, states Wall Street Journal reporter, citing three sources in the US Senate.
“At least 3 congressional Republicans—including chairs of House and Senate Armed Services—are hinting strongly that a ground operation in Iran is planned and could potentially be underway soon,” he wrote.
The US has begun building up ground forces near Iran, having deployed thousands of additional marines and paratroopers to the Middle East in recent days.
A US Navy ship carrying thousands of marines is expected to come under the control of US Central Command, which oversees American forces in the Middle East, as early as this week.
The Pentagon has also begun preparing thousands of rapid-deployment paratroopers who could potentially join the 50,000 service members previously reported to be in the region as part of the conflict dubbed Operation Epic Fury.
As is known, amid talk of a US ground operation, Tehran is bolstering the defenses of Kharg Island - Iran’s main oil hub, which has already been attacked by Washington, and President Donald Trump has vowed to strike again.
Latest on the war in Iran
Earlier, Trump stated that the US had decided to shift from bombing Iran to negotiations, as Tehran had begun to say sensible things.
The Americans delivered a 15‑point peace plan to Iran aimed at ending hostilities in the Middle East. However, Tehran criticized the plan, calling it excessive, and put forward its own conditions for ending the war.
But on the evening of March 25, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that reports of Iran rejecting the 15‑point US peace plan were false.
