06:01 01-02-2026

US Navy Takes Positions as Trump Weighs Strike on Iran

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The US Navy and Air Force are deploying across the Middle East as Donald Trump reviews military options against Iran, including strikes and special forces.

On January 30, the US Navy began taking up combat positions in the Middle East in anticipation of a possible operation against Iran. Israeli and US media reported that a destroyer arriving in the region as part of a US carrier strike group docked at the port of Eilat on the Red Sea. The group is led by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.

At the same time, Washington has strengthened its air presence in the region. F-15E multirole fighter jets deployed by the United States to the Middle East in January have taken up positions at a US base in Jordan. This is the same facility used during Operation Midnight Hammer on the night of June 22, 2025, when the United States struck Iranian nuclear infrastructure sites.

On January 29, US President Donald Trump was presented with an updated and expanded list of military options regarding Tehran. According to sources, the document outlines several possible scenarios.

The most dangerous option under consideration involves deploying US special operations forces on Iranian territory to destroy or disable elements of Iran’s nuclear program that were not hit during last year’s US-Israeli strikes. Sources say US forces have long practiced such missions during regular exercises, including covert penetration and strikes against critical targets.

At the same time, Trump has previously signaled that he would prefer to avoid a large-scale ground operation. His earlier remarks suggested that US intervention would not necessarily involve deploying troops on the ground, but could instead rely on powerful strikes against key vulnerabilities.

Another option presented to Trump involves a series of strikes against Iranian state institutions linked to security agencies and the political leadership. According to sources, the goal would be to destabilize the country and create conditions for the forcible removal of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who holds decisive power within the system.

A third scenario, which Israel is reportedly ready to actively support, envisions a wave of strikes against Iran’s defense industry facilities aimed at crippling the country’s ballistic missile program. All of these options remain under review, sources said.

Publicly, Trump has claimed to be in contact with Iranian authorities and said he sought to persuade Tehran to reach a comprehensive agreement with Washington. At the same time, he has hardened his rhetoric, accusing Iranian authorities of continuing violence against protesters. US media link this shift to updated intelligence assessments indicating that Iran’s leadership is in its weakest position since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. In Washington, this moment is reportedly seen as the most favorable for dismantling Iran’s political system, which Israel views as hostile and dangerous.

Against this backdrop, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu convened security consultations on January 29 with senior advisers and Defense Ministry officials to discuss Iran and the potential consequences of a military confrontation in the region.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has declared its readiness to repel expected strikes and warned that it would attack US military facilities. The IRGC claims that not only individual US bases but the entire American military infrastructure in the region lies within its reach, and that any hostile action would be met with retaliation on land, at sea, and against US bases.

Sanctions pressure on the IRGC is also intensifying. On January 29, EU foreign ministers decided to add the corps to the European list of terrorist organizations. On January 30, the United Kingdom announced plans to introduce legislation that would allow the IRGC to be banned as well.