More than 3,500 U.S. troops arrive in Middle East as Iran war intensifies

More than 3,500 U.S. troops, including the USS Tripoli with about 2,500 Marines, arrived in the Middle East, officials announced Saturday, as strikes in the Iran war intensified.

The U.S. Central Command said in a social media post that the USS Tripoli, which serves as the flagship for the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group / 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, arrived in its area of responsibility.

It’s the most updated of the amphibious warships, known as a “big deck,” which allows more room for F-35 Stealth Fighter Jets, Ospreys and other aircraft. The ship had previously been based in Japan when the order to deploy to the Middle East came almost two weeks ago.

Central Command said that in addition to the Marines, the Tripoli also brings transport and strike fighter aircraft, as well as amphibious assault assets to the region. The USS Boxer and two other ships, along with another Marine Expeditionary Unit, have also been ordered to the region from San Diego.

More than 11,000 targets have been struck since Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28, CENTCOM said Saturday in a fact sheet.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday the United States can meet its objectives “without any ground troops.” But he also said President Trump “has to be prepared for multiple contingencies” and that American forces are available “to give the president maximum optionality and maximum, opportunity to adjust to contingencies should they emerge.”

The arrival of the U.S. troops in the region comes after at least 10 U.S. troops, including two who were seriously wounded, were injured when Iran fired six ballistic missiles and 29 drones at Saudi Arabia’s Prince Sultan air base.

The war, which continues to intensify despite reports of Mr. Trump pushing for a deal, has upended global air travel, disrupted oil exports and caused fuel prices to soar. Iran’s stranglehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway, has exacerbated the economic fallout.

On Saturday, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels said they entered the month-old war by claiming a missile launch that Israel said it intercepted.

The Houthis’ entry could further hurt global shipping if they again target vessels in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait off the Red Sea. If the Houthis increase attacks on commercial shipping, as they have in the past, it would further push up oil prices and destabilize “all of maritime security,” said Ahmed Nagi, a senior Yemen analyst at the International Crisis Group. “The impact would not be limited to the energy market.”

Countries have scrambled for alternative routes to the Strait of Hormuz. Bab el-Mandeb, at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, is crucial for vessels heading to the Suez Canal through the Red Sea and Saudi Arabia has been sending millions of barrels of crude oil a day through it because the Strait of Hormuz is effectively closed.

About 12% of the world’s trade typically passes through Bab el-Mandeb and about 10% of global maritime trade – including 40% of container ship traffic – passes through the Suez Canal each year.

Houthi rebels attacked over 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two vessels, between November 2023 and January 2025, saying it was attacking in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza during the war there between Israel and Hamas.

The Houthis’ involvement also would complicate the deployment of the USS Gerald R. Ford, the aircraft carrier that arrived in Croatia on Saturday for repairs. Sending the carrier to the Red Sea could draw attacks similar to those experienced by the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in 2024 and the USS Harry S. Truman in 2025.

The Houthis have held Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, since 2014. Saudi Arabia launched a war against the Houthis on behalf of Yemen’s exiled government in 2015, and the rebels had stayed out of the current conflict due to their uneasy ceasefire with Saudi Arabia.

Mr. Trump has given Iran until April 6 to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran says it has not engaged in any negotiations.

Trump envoy Steve Witkoff has said Washington delivered a 15-point “action list” to Iran for a possible ceasefire, with a proposal to restrict Iran’s nuclear program — the issue at the heart of tensions with the U.S and Israel — and reopen the strait. Tehran rejected the proposal and presented a five-point proposal that included reparations and recognition of its sovereignty over the waterway.

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