By R. Cort Kirkwood (The New American)
U.S. President Donald Trump was telling the truth when he told the New York Post he didn’t “have the yips” about sending troops to Iran.
Myriad news outlets confirmed that almost 2,500 Marines are headed to the region in what appears to be the beginning of “boots on the ground,” and possibly, another endless war on behalf of Israel.
Trump admitted in an interview with Fox Radio today that his early hope that encouraged Iranians would rise up and overthrow the Islamic regime has been dashed. The people don’t have weapons, he said, which means they won’t overthrow the government, U.S. and Israeli bombing regardless.
The U.S. Naval Institute (USNI) News confirmed with two defense officials that 2,200 Marines with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) based in Okinawa, Japan, boarded the USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship that resembles an aircraft carrier.
The ship “will join the Gerald R. Ford and Abraham Lincoln carrier strike groups that have been operating in the region,” USNI News reported:
Tripoli was operating in the Philippine Sea earlier this week with USS San Diego (LPD-22) and USS New Orleans (LPD-18), according to the March 9 USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker. The three ships make up the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group. It’s unclear whether all three ships are heading to the Middle East, or if Tripoli will go on its own. Ship spotters identified Tripoli sailing alone south of Taiwan heading through the Luzon Strait on Thursday.
The 31st MEU is based in Okinawa. Navy Amphibious Ready Groups and Marine Corps MEUs that deploy with the U.S. Central Command, which is managing Operation Epic Fury, typically come from the east coast of the United States, the website noted.
“It’s unclear what missions Tripoli and the MEU elements might do in CENTCOM,” USNI News reported…
Read the rest here: 2,200 Marines Headed for Iran in Apparent Preparation for Boots on the Ground – The New American
