US ‘preparing for ground invasion’ of Iran with marines arriving in the Gulf

The United States is preparing a ground invasion of Iran as thousands of American soldiers and Marines arrive in the region.

The Pentagon is drawing up plans for weeks of troops on the ground in Iran, the Washington Post reported.

Anonymous officials said operations would fall short of a full-scale invasion but involve raids by special forces and conventional troops.

Donald Trump is yet to approve any plans, but he has previously called a ground invasion a ‘waste of time’.

U.S. Marines on the flight deck of America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli, which is heading towards the Gulf (Picture: USS Tripoli (LHA 7))

The President told reporters in the Oval Office last week: ‘I’m not putting troops anywhere. If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you, but I’m not putting troops.’

Despite this, a further 3,500 American troops have arrived in the Middle East.

The sailors and marines sailed into the region as part of a unit led by the warship USS Tripoli, which also includes assault and transport assets.

Iran’s speaker reacted to reports of a ground invasion by saying the regime were ready to fight them off.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said: ‘[The armed forces]… are waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever.’

He added: ‘Our firing continues. Our missiles are in place. Our determination and faith have increased.’

These threats came after Iran warned it will hit US and Israeli universities in the Middle East in revenge for attacks against its own institutions.

They gave Washington a midday Monday deadline to condemn strikes on the University of Science and Technology in Tehran.

It has been heavily speculated that US troops might seize Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf, which handles roughly 90 percent of Iran’s crude oil exports.

Karg Island in the Persian Gulf has been speculated as a target for a boots-on-the-ground operation (Picture: EPA)

The five-mile long island is around a third of the size of Manhattan in New York, and has been described by US officials as the ‘nexus for all the Iranian oil supply.’

Any ground operation in Iran would face considerable public backlash.

One poll, conducted jointly by the Associated Press and the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago, found that 62 percent of respondents strongly oppose the use of ground troops in Iran.

Only 12 percent were in favour.

A staunch support of the President in Congress, Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wisconsin), told reporters on Thursday he has been ‘100 percent crystal clear from the beginning’ that he opposed boots on the ground.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said: ‘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.’

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