Senior US military officials have reportedly submitted detailed preparation requests to US President Donald Trump as Operation Epic Fury against the Iranian regime continues.
The Pentagon has made preparations for deploying US ground forces into Iran, according to a CBS News report citing multiple sources briefed on the subject on Friday.
According to the report, senior US military officials have submitted detailed preparation requests to US President Donald Trump as Operation Epic Fury against the Iranian regime continues.
Additionally, the Pentagon is reportedly preparing for the potential detention of Iranian soldiers and paramilitary operatives during a ground offensive against Iran.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement: "It's the job of the Pentagon to make preparations in order to give the Commander in Chief maximum optionality; it does not mean the President has made a decision, and as the President said in the Oval Office yesterday, he is not planning to send ground troops anywhere at this time."
The US will be deploying thousands of additional Marines and sailors to the Middle East, Reuters reported, citing three US officials, as the US-Israeli war on Iran reached the three-week mark.
Trump says US plans to continue operations until 'Iran can't rebuild'
Trump said on Friday that the US could "leave the Iran operation right now and still leave Tehran unable to rebuild for more than a decade," but explained that that's "not an acceptable situation."
“If we left right now, it would take them at least 10 years to rebuild, but rebuild they will,” Trump said in the roughly 15-minute call with CNBC.
“If we stay longer, they’ll never rebuild,” he added.
Goldie Katz contributed to this report.
