Trump weighs sending another 10,000 ground troops to the Middle East: Report

The United States is considering sending an additional 10,000 ground troops to West Asia despite the talks with Iran, the Jerusalem Post said, citing a report by the Wall Street Journal released on Thursday.

As per the Jerusalem Post, the report by the Wall Street Journal cited Department of War officials noting that the deployment is likely to include both infantry and armoured vehicles, in addition to the 82nd Airborne Division, which is already deployed to the region.

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While experts have suggested that the deployment of the 82nd Airborne Division is aimed directly at Iranian strategic interests like the Kharg Island, WSJ's report noted that it is unclear where the additional force would be sent or stationed.

"All announcements regarding troop deployments will come from the Department of War," Deputy White House Press Secretary Anna Kelly said. "As we have said, President Trump always has all military options at his disposal." A spokesperson for US Central Command (CENTCOM) declined to give the WSJ a comment.

The developments come as the US-Israel and Iran conflict stands in its fourth week now. Earlier, US President Trump signalled a thaw in operations against Iran, saying that Iran had sought a seven-day pause on American strikes targeting its energy infrastructure, but he decided to extend the window to 10 days to April 6, however the strikes by the combined US-Israel forces continue.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) announced the launch of the 83rd wave of Operation True Promise 4 in the early hours of Friday, which targeted key American and Israeli military installations across the region with advanced missiles and drones.

Also read: The Iran war is now all about the future of Hormuz

With the evolving security situation in the region, Iran has formally informed the United Nations about media reports which cited US and Israeli plans to assassinate senior Iranian leadership officials, which include Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, according to a report by Press TV.

As per Press TV, Iran's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN, Amir Saeed Iravani expressed deep concern over the reported assassination plots in an official letter on Thursday addressed to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the President of the Security Council.