US to deploy thousands more soldiers — reports

The US Defense Department is expected to send some 3,000 more soldiers to the Middle East to support operations in Iran, according to two officials cited by the Wall Street Journal.

Reuters news agency also reported that thousands of soldiers were expected to be deployed, citing two people familiar with the matter.

The forces would come from the army’s 82nd Airborne Division, a brigade known for its ability to deploy quickly anywhere in the world.

The officials did not specify where in the Middle East the troops would go or when they would arrive.

The 82nd Airborne Division is stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and specializes in parachuting into hostile or contested territory to secure land.

The officials told the WSJ and Reuters that a decision to put boots on the ground in Iran had not been made.

But the military buildup could give US President Donald Trump options for future operations, such as reopening the Strait of Hormuz by force or seizing Iran’s strategic islands, the WSJ reported.

Last week, the US deployed 2,500 Marines and sailors aboard the USS Boxer, an amphibious assault ship, to the region.

The New York Times first reported on Monday that the Trump administration was weighing the possible deployment of the 82nd Airborne Division.