American President Donald Trump saluting U.S. Army soldiers carrying the flag-draped coffin of an American servicewoman killed in Iran, Staff Sergeant Nicole Amor, on March 7, 2026. (Credit: Saul Loeb/AFP)
BEIRUT — The Pentagon is expected to deploy thousands of additional troops to the Middle East in the coming days, at a time when the Trump administration is intensifying pressure on Iran to reach an agreement that could end the conflict, according to U.S. officials cited in an article published Wednesday by the Washington Post.
These forces include about 6,000 soldiers aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush and its accompanying warships, as well as about 4,200 personnel from the “Boxer Amphibious Ready Group” and the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, who are expected to arrive later in April. These reinforcements are set to join the nearly 50,000 American troops already stationed in the region, the article adds.
Officials cited by the newspaper note that this deployment comes as a fragile two-week cease-fire is set to end on April 22, and the U.S. administration is considering other military options in case diplomacy fails.
President Donald Trump announced Sunday a maritime blockade targeting Iranian ports, aiming to force Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume negotiations on its nuclear program. In response, the Iranian military pledged to block trade in the Red Sea, as well as in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, if the American naval blockade continued.
A former senior Defense official told the newspaper that American forces enforcing the blockade could target ships suspected of supporting Iran, including through armed boarding operations led by the Navy SEALs, Marines or Coast Guard units.
At least six merchant ships were reportedly intercepted in the first 24 hours of the blockade operation and sent back to Iranian ports without incident. More than a dozen American warships are now positioned in the Gulf of Oman and the Sea of Oman to enforce the blockade near the Strait of Hormuz.
On his Truth Social platform, President Trump warned that any ship approaching the blockade zone could be subject to deadly force: "If any of these ships come anywhere close to our BLOCKADE, they will be immediately ELIMINATED, using the same system of kill that we use against the drug dealers on boats at sea."
Officials also acknowledged the risks of escalation, including possible American ground operations in Iran, which could consist of special operations missions targeting nuclear materials and even larger Marine deployments, or attempts to take control of strategic sites such as Kharg Island, from which Iran essentially exports its oil.
Retired officials warned that such scenarios would carry significant risks. According to one, Mick Mulroy, "this will not happen without consequences." "There will probably be casualties," he said.
