The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, comprised of about 5,000 Marines and sailors, is currently operating near Japan.
By Catholics for Catholics
According to a story by The Epoch Times, a U.S. Marine Expeditionary Unit is poised to relocate to the Middle East in the middle of an in-progress military operation against Iran, a U.S. official familiar with the matter has told the newspaper.
The 31st MEU is presently active near Japan, aboard the USS Tripoli amphibious assault ship, and the USS San Diego and USS New Orleans amphibious transport dock ships.
The awe-inspiring force may bring additional land, amphibious, and aerial combat and support capabilities to Iran.
The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), comprising of about 5,000 Marines and sailors, had received orders to deploy to the Middle East.
The USS Tripoli, being amphibious, is akin to a small aircraft carrier and can launch specialized fighter aircraft. In recent weeks, the ship has been photographed working with the Marine Corps’ short-takeoff variant F-35B Lightning II stealth fighter jets.
In addition, the three ships reinforcing the 31st MEU are also capable of launching a variety of attack and troop transport helicopters, as well as amphibious landing craft.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said after a closed-door intelligence briefing on March 10, “We seem to be on a path toward deploying American troops on the ground in Iran.”
When queried about Blumenthal’s words and the possibility for U.S. ground troops becoming entangled in the fighting, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump “does not rule options out as commander in chief,” but warned against trusting “anything that a Democrat on Capitol Hill says right now about the president’s thinking.”
