Suspicion about the elite unit's mysterious order
On Friday, the president stated that the US will only end the war after Iran's "unconditional surrender". Photo: Jacquelyn Martin /AP/TT
The exercise of the American elite unit was urgently canceled.
Within the Pentagon, it is suspected that they will instead plan operations with ground troops in the Middle East, writes the Washington Post.
They are also pointing out the place where a possible invasion of Iran is likely to begin.
There has been much speculation that the US and Israel's bombing war against Iran will develop into a full-fledged ground invasion.
A secret order to the staff coordinating elite operations on foreign soil is now fueling suspicions that the White House is planning to send troops to the region.
“Waiting for the Americans”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview with American television that they are “waiting for the Americans.”Donald Trump responded shortly afterwards that it would be a “waste of time,” but has not completely ruled out the possibility of a ground invasion.
On Friday, the president said that the United States would only end the war after Iran’s “unconditional surrender.”
“Unconditional surrender could mean that they announce it. But it could also be when they can’t fight anymore because they have no one or nothing left to fight with,” Trump told Axios.
Exercise unexpectedly canceled
The 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg in North Carolina has a brigade combat group unit with up to 5,000 soldiers that can be deployed with 18-hour readiness.
The decision to cancel the exercise for the staff section has led to speculation within the Defense Department that soldiers specializing in ground combat may be sent to the Middle East, the newspaper writes.
Among the missions the unit specializes in are “taking and securing airfields and other critical infrastructure, reinforcing American embassies and enabling emergency evacuations,” the Washington Post reports.
Coordinates operations
The division’s staff section is responsible for coordinating how these operations are planned and carried out.The unexpected new order has increased expectations that the 82nd Airborne Division's immediate task force will be called in, writes the Washington Post.
- We are all preparing for something, just in case, a source tells the newspaper.
Neither the Pentagon nor the US Central Command, which is responsible for operations in the Middle East, wants to comment on the information for the Washington Post.
"For operational security reasons, we do not comment on future or hypothetical troop movements," the Pentagon said in a statement.
Points out strategic island
Among other things, before the killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020 and during the evacuations of Afghanistan in 2021.
If the White House were to decide to send ground troops into Iran, the island of Kharg is being singled out as a likely first starting point, writes the Washington Post.
90 percent of Iran's oil exports pass through the island and would give the US control over a strategically important part of the Iranian economy.
"Bigger problem than thought"
Expert Michael Rubin at the conservative think tank American Enterprise Institute tells the Washington Post that securing Kharg in the event of an invasion would be a "given."Rubin believes that capturing the island would give the US important strategic advantages, including the ability to strangle Iran's ability to pay its troops.
He also tells the newspaper that it appears that the White House "is beginning to realize that Iran is a much bigger problem than first thought."
On Friday evening, the US Central Command stated that it has carried out 3,000 airstrikes against Iran so far during the war. It has also damaged or sunk 43 Iranian
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