Satellite Images Show US Navy Vessels Deploy for Possible Iran Attack

Satellite imagery showed that all forward-deployed U.S. Navy vessels have left a key port in the Middle Eastern country of Bahrain as Washington braces for a potential Iranian strike.
Newsweek contacted the Pentagon for comment on the naval moves.
The U.S. military buildup in the region signals a posture of high readiness amid growing uncertainty over whether President Donald Trump will back Israel's offensive against Iran. While Trump had long sought to broker Middle East deals and steer America away from protracted entanglements, his approach toward Iran has leaned on pressure and coercion.
If the U.S. enters the conflict, Iran is expected to strike back not only at American assets but also at key regional allies, with Gulf nations among the possible first targets.
At least one Littoral Combat Ship, four Mine Countermeasure vessels, and the special operations mothership M/V Ocean Trader are currently underway in the U.S. Central Command area of operations, according to satellite imagery shared by open-source analysts on X, formerly Twitter, such as Ian Ellis.
Their departure suggests movement into strategic positions across the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, or Gulf of Oman-all key zones within CENTCOM area of responsibility, analysts said.
On Monday, the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier diverted from the South China Sea to the Middle East, where it would join the USS Carl Vinson carrier strike group that entered the Arabian Sea in April. A U.S. strike on Iran's underground Fordow facility would likely involve a GBU-57/B bunker buster delivered by B-2 bombers based at Diego Garcia.
"Consistent with the duty to protect U.S. forces in the Middle East, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth directed the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group to the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility to sustain our defensive posture and safeguard American personnel," a defense official told Newsweek on Tuesday.
U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday: "We know exactly where the so-called "Supreme leader" is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there - We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least for now. But we don't want missiles shot at civilians or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
Heather Williams, Associate Director of the International Security and Defense Policy Program at RAND, in a published Israel-Iran analysis: "The threat to U.S. personnel in the region is real. In terms of broader conflict in the Middle East, Israeli military successes against Iran are likely to reduce the threat in the short term and raise it in the long term. On the one hand, this could give Washington space to focus on more-immediate security needs in other theaters, but it also could set conditions for a future Middle East conflict that would mire the United States when it wants to be focused elsewhere."
U.S. Air Force aerial refueling aircraft are also headed for the Middle East amid an escalating war between Israel and Iran. The key question will be whether the United States joins the action.
Related Articles
Map Shows U.S. Middle East Travel Warnings as Possible Iran War LoomsAmerican Killed in Deadly Russian Strike on KyivUS Aircraft Carrier USS George Washington Counters China Navy PresenceHow Iran Could Retaliate Against US. Three Possible Options
2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Hamilton Spectator

18 minutes ago

• Hamilton Spectator

‘Rage' survey shows the politician Canadians are most angry about

Justin Trudeau leaving the stage has eased the rage. And credit Donald Trump with giving Canadian politicians a bump. That's the suggestion from Pollara Strategic Insights' latest 'Rage Index' poll . Since the firm's last such survey in November , Canadians' anger toward the federal government has plunged 18 percentage points and there was a 10 percentage point drop in frustration with various provincial governments. 'One of the main theories on this is Trudeau himself was obviously a focal point of a lot of anger in Canada. We haven't done the poll since he left as prime minister,' said Dan Arnold, Pollara's chief strategy officer. Trudeau governed from 2015 until being succeeded in March by Prime Minister Mark Carney, who then kept the Liberals in power by securing a minority government in the April federal election. 'You don't see as many 'F—- Carney' flags as you did 'F—- Trudeau' flags,' said Arnold, referring to the profane banners that became commonplace around the time of the so-called ' Freedom Convoy ' protest in Ottawa three years ago. Overall, 37 per cent were angry with the federal government — down from 55 per cent in November — while 28 per cent were happy and 35 per cent were neutral. Similarly, 42 per cent were angry with their provincial government — compared with 52 per cent in the last poll — with 27 per cent happy and 31 per cent neutral. But 78 per cent of respondents were angry with the new U.S. president, who has launched a trade war against Canada, while eight per cent were happy and 14 per cent had no opinion. 'The other thing that's going on is that Donald Trump is a big source of anger. Trump has become a bit of a lightning rod of anger,' said Arnold. 'A lot of the frustrations that people would normally put on their Canadian political leaders have been redirected toward Trump,' he said. Using online panels, Pollara surveyed 3,400 people across the country May 16-20. While opt-in polls cannot be assigned a margin of error, for comparison purposes, a random sample of this size would have one of plus or minus 1.7 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The firm found 49 per cent were unhappy with 'the types of changes happening in Canada,' an improvement on the 59 per cent finding last fall. Only 16 per cent were happy on that metric with 35 per cent neutral. But 40 per cent of respondents were happy with the results of the April 28 election while 34 per cent were unhappy and 26 per cent were neutral. About one-third — 32 per cent — were happy with Carney's new cabinet sworn in last month while 26 per cent were unhappy and 42 per cent had no opinion. However, 56 per cent are angry about the Canadian economy, a one percentage point uptick from November's poll, with only 14 per cent happy and 30 per cent were neutral. In that same vein, 38 per cent were unhappy with their own personal financial situation, up from 36 per cent in the last survey while 32 per cent were happy and 30 per cent were neutral. 'That's the one area where we don't see people feeling better,' noted Arnold. 'Actually, the anger level has gone up a little bit on things like the Canadian economy and personal finances — and that is absolutely because of the uncertainty that's going on right now,' the pollster said. 'We've seen unemployment figures starting to tick up and there's ... a lot of angst out there about what tariffs are going to mean and what this is going to have as an impact on Canada,' he said. 'So that is where we do see anger increasing. Trump himself is obviously catching a lot of the negative sentiment that otherwise would be going towards Canadian leaders. People are upset with the economy, but they're blaming it on Trump, instead of blaming it on Mark Carney or the provincial premiers right now.'

Yahoo

21 minutes ago

• Yahoo

The Latest: 2nd week of Israel-Iran war starts with renewed strikes

The second week of the Israel-Iran war started with a renewed round of strikes despite talks between European ministers and Iran's top diplomat. Friday's talks, which aimed at de-escalating the fighting between the two adversaries, lasted for four hours in Geneva, but failed to produce a breakthrough. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump continued to weigh his country's military involvement and concerns spiked over potential strikes on nuclear reactors. Still, European officials expressed hope for future negotiations. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he was open to further dialogue but stressed Tehran wasn't interested in negotiating with the U.S. while Israel continued attacking. Here is the latest: Italians evacuated from Iran arrive in Azerbaijan The Italian foreign ministry said the 24 Italians are the second group to evacuate via Azerbaijan's Baku, on their way back home. 'After about nine hours of travel and a very long wait at the border, the group was welcomed by representatives of the Italian Embassy in Baku, and then moved to the airport of the Azerbaijani capital to wait to return to Italy with the first available flights,' the ministry said. The group included an Italian doctor and his partner, an Iranian woman and their 18-month-old child, the ministry said. Another convoy from Iran could depart from Tehran as early as Monday. The first group that arrived in Italy via Baku in recent days had 34 Italian nationals. Italy's foreign ministry also said it chartered a flight to help evacuate its citizens from Israel via Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on Sunday. Evacuees in Cyprus recall missiles flying overhead Noah Page says it's one thing to watch missiles crisscrossing the sky on the news and another to experience it firsthand. 'You see it on the news, you see everything, but you never really expect it to actually hit you when you're there,' the Ohio-native told the Associated Press. 'As someone who grew up in Canada, it's so foreign to me to even think about missiles or a war and you hear about it on the news and it's just so separate from you,' said the 23-year-old who didn't want to give her last name. "It sort of felt like fireworks at first until the reality of the situation set in. I need to run or I might end up hurt.' Page and Pe'er were among an estimated 1,500 other young people from around the world visiting Israel who were evacuated by cruise ship on Saturday to Cyprus, the closest European country to Israel, at around 270 kilometers. It was the second such trip by the cruise ship bringing people out while ferrying stranded Israelis back to their homeland. Florida native Alex Rosenblum had been in Israel before in times of war, when the sounds of sirens urging citizens to rush to shelters had become almost routine. But he says this time it was different. 'This situation with Iran has been a lot scarier because there's a big difference between a rocket and a missile,' he said. The three young people found safety in underground shelters when digital alerts were sent out. But Pe'er says you can never shake the feeling that you're in danger. Iran's Araghchi says it will be 'very dangerous' if US gets involved in war Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said it would be 'very, very dangerous for everyone' if the United States becomes actively involved in the war with Israel. He spoke to reporters in Istanbul on his way home from talks in Geneva. Araghchi said American military involvement 'would be very unfortunate.' UN refugee agency calls for de-escalation The UNHCR said Saturday that the intensity of the attacks is already triggering population movements in Israel and Iran: Some from Tehran and other parts of Iran have crossed into neighboring countries while shelling has caused people in Israel to seek shelter elsewhere in the country and, in some cases, abroad. The agency urged states in the region to respect the right of people to seek safety where needed and to facilitate humanitarian access. 'This region has already endured more than its share of war, loss, and displacement — we cannot allow another refugee crisis to take root,' the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, said. 'The time to de-escalate is right now. Once people are forced to flee, there's no quick way back — and all too often, the consequences last for generations.' Tehran vows to make Grossi 'pay' A senior adviser for Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, vowed in a social media post Saturday to make the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency 'pay' once the war with Israel is over. Ali Larijani's threat comes as IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi has become a major target for many Iranian officials who say his conflicting statements about the status of Iran's nuclear program incited the Israeli surprise attack last week. Grossi told the United Nations' Security Council Friday that while Iran has the material to build a nuclear bomb, it appears they have no plans to do so. The Associated Press

USA Today

22 minutes ago

• USA Today

Trump Mobile, gender care and the champion Panthers: The week in review

Floods ravage Texas, Appalachians Torrential rain and flash flooding in Texas and parts of West Virginia trapped drivers, swept vehicles away and pulled homes off their foundations, leaving as many as 20 people dead and communities struggling to recover. Thunderstorms over San Antonio dropped nearly 10 inches of rain in a matter of hours, more that double the amount of rain the area typically gets in all of June. Up to 4 inches drenched the Appalachian region, overwhelming creeks and waterways. 'It happened so quickly,' said Lou Vargo, Ohio County's emergency management director. "I've been doing this for 35 years. … I've never seen anything like this.' Court upholds gender care ban The U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to the transgender rights movement and a victory to the Trump administration when it upheld a Tennessee law barring gender-affirming care for minors. The ruling fell along ideological lines as the court's six conservative justices ruled in favor of the ban and the three liberals dissented. Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said the decision was a victory 'in defense of America's children'; Kimberly Inez McGuire, head of Unite for Reproductive & Gender Equity, said the court chose 'cruelty over care.' Trump Mobile answers the call Yet another enterprise is getting the Trump name. Trump Mobile, a new cellular service, will offer the 5G '47 Plan' for $47.45 a month (Donald Trump is the nation's 47th and 45th president) and its own phone, the T1 Phone, the Trump Organization announced. 'Trump Mobile is going to change the game,' said Donald Trump Jr., who runs the president's conglomerate with his brother Eric. The gold-colored phone will retail for $499. Of course that's not the only venture in the Trump orbit: There's Truth Social and the crypto company World Liberty Financial, plus Trump Bibles, watches, sneakers and guitars. Steve Carell's advice to grads: 'Just dance' When Steve Carell is your commencement speaker, you should be ready for anything. The actor, who was presented with an honorary degree from Northwestern University before he spoke to its graduates, briefly turned the ceremony into a dance party as he bolted off the stage and into the crowd of delighted grads to 'That's Not My Name' by The Ting Tings. 'That was as invigorating as it was disturbing,' he told them afterward. His speech was not without some sage advice: 'Remember to laugh when you have the opportunity and to cry when necessary,' he said. And, 'just dance sometimes.' Twice is nice for the Florida Panthers Who said the Sunshine State is no place for hockey? The Florida Panthers netted their second straight Stanley Cup − and denied the Edmonton Oilers a second straight time − with a 5-1 romp in front of the home crowd in Game 6 behind a record-tying four goals from winger Sam Reinhart. The Cats join their brethren the Tampa Bay Lightning, who won back-to-back Cups in 2020 and 2021. As for Edmonton, falling short again was especially stinging: The last Canadian team to take home the Stanley Cup was the Montreal Canadiens in 1993. − Compiled and written by Robert Abitbol, USA TODAY copy chief