USS Tripoli Delivers Marines, Sailors to Middle East

A deployment of 2,500 Marines arrived on the USS Tripoli in the Middle East on Saturday, US military officials said, accompanied by 2,500 sailors. The Marines come from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is normally stationed in Okinawa, Japan, and are part of the Tripoli amphibious ready group, the New York Times reports. They landed on the same day that the Iran war widened to include Yemen's Houthi movement, which fired a ballistic missile at Israel that caused no reported casualties. Later in the day, the Houthis announced a second wave of strikes on Israel that was not immediately confirmed.

Officials declined to specify the Marines' exact location, citing operational security, but they're now in the US Central Command area of the Middle East, per the Hill. Other ships are on their way, including the San Diego-based USS Boxer, carrying at least 2,200 Marines with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which left Wednesday. It would reach the Centcom area in less than a month. Indications are that the force will be enlisted to support President Trump's effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Iranian forces have largely shut. He has not ruled out using Marines or Special Forces in that effort, per the Times, though Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday said that ground troops will not be needed to accomplish the administration's goals in the war.