Thousands of Marines arrive in Middle East aboard USS Tripoli

The Pentagon is expanding its military footprint in the Middle East, with thousands of Marines deployed to the region.

By World Israel News Staff

Thousands of Marines arrived in the Middle East on Friday, marking the arrival of the first of two amphibious ready groups ordered to the region, as the United States bolsters its troop presence ahead of a possible ground invasion of Iran.

The Marines arrived aboard the USS Tripoli warship, according to a post on X by U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM).

In the post, which included images of the ship and troops aboard it bearing weapons, CENTCOM wrote that sailors and Marines had reached the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility on March 27.

The USS Tripoli is an “America-class amphibious assault ship” that “serves as the flagship for the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group/31st Marine Expeditionary Unit,” CENTCOM wrote, adding that the unit is “composed of about 3,500 Sailors and Marines, in addition to transport and strike fighter aircraft, as well as amphibious assault and tactical assets.”

According to military news site Task & Purpose, some 1,200 of those Marines are ground forces.

A second ship carrying thousands of Marines is also expected to arrive in the region in the near future.

The USS Boxer and its supporting ships departed from San Diego in mid-March, transporting around 2,500 troops from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

At least 1,000 additional soldiers from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division are expected to deploy to the region soon.

A Trump administration official told Task & Purpose that the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush and its carrier strike group will soon join Operation Epic Fury.

That will mark the third aircraft carrier deployed to the region.

Since the outbreak of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran in late February, some 200 American troops have been wounded in combat, with most returning to duty. Thirteen U.S. soldiers have been killed.