US Deploys 50+ Jets to Middle East Amid Iran Nuclear Talks
The United States has deployed more than 50 fighter jets to the Middle East over the past 24 hours, bolstering its military presence in the region as American and Iranian officials held a second round of indirect talks in Geneva on Iran's nuclear program.
US officials described the aircraft movements as a significant reinforcement of air assets. Independent flight tracking data and military aviation monitors recorded multiple F-22, F-35 and F-16 jets heading toward the area, accompanied by several aerial refueling tankers. These tankers indicate preparations for sustained operations. A US official confirmed that the jets were repositioned within a single day, highlighting the rapid scale of the buildup.
In parallel, the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier strike group departed the Caribbean and is now transiting the mid-Atlantic toward the Middle East, according to a Navy official who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the movements. The group includes three guided-missile destroyers: the USS Mahan, USS Bainbridge and USS Winston Churchill. Based on its current position, the carrier is more than a week away from waters near Iran. The USS Abraham Lincoln...