2,200 more Marines, 3 Navy ships likely headed to Middle East: Officials
In this handout image provided by the U.S. Navy, the USS Boxer (LHD 4) departs from Naval Air Station North Island January 14, 2004 in San Diego, California. (Tiffini M. Jones/U.S. Navy via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Three Navy ships carrying 2,200 Marines left San Diego earlier this week for a previously scheduled deployment to the Indo-Pacific, but two U.S. officials tell ABC News their ultimate destination is likely the Middle East.
The 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is aboard the USS Boxer, the USS Comstock and the USS Portland — along with 2,000 sailors.
If it receives final orders to the Middle East, joining the 31st MEU, it will be an increase of close to 9,000 additional forces to the region.
The 31st MEU is still on its way to the Middle East from Asia after receiving orders from the Pentagon last Friday. Those Marines and ships are likely to arrive in the region sometime next week.
It will take two weeks for the USS Boxer Amphibious Ready Group to get to southeast Asia, then additional time to make its way to the Middle East if it gets final orders to go there.
Included in the MEU: ground forces, a logistical element and aviation units that include fighter jets, MV-22 Ospreys and attack helicopters.
Last week’s deployment of the 31st MEU to the Middle East has sparked speculation as to whether they might be used to seize Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf — crucial to Iran’s oil trade — or carry out raids on the Iranian shoreline around the Strait of Hormuz.
For now, the U.S. Navy Third Fleet says the 11th MEU is conducting routine operations in its area of operations.
“An integral part of U.S. Pacific Fleet, U.S. 3rd Fleet operates naval forces in the Indo-Pacific to conduct routine training that ensures the continued warfighting readiness of Navy and Marine forces operating in the area,” the U.S. Navy Third Fleet said in a statement.
US President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference at the White House, Washington, D.C., US on February 20, 2026. (Photo by Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump has pushed back against news reports that his top military adviser, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, privately cautioned that if Trump ordered a U.S. military strike on Iran, a lack of critical munitions and support from allies could pose risks to American troops.
“General Caine, like all of us, would like not to see War but, if a decision is made on going against Iran at a Military level, it is his opinion that it will be something easily won,” Trump posted Monday on his social media platform.
That statement came as Trump was said to be considering military options as he puts pressure on Iran to end its nuclear program or face “bad” consequences.
According to a U.S. official, Tehran was expected to offer a new nuclear proposal by Tuesday ahead of another round of negotiations in Geneva led by special envoy Steve Witkoff on Thursday.
The meeting would be the second round of indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran, with Omanis and Qataris passing notes between the delegations.
In a statement, a Joint Staff spokesman emphasized that Caine’s role is to provide “a range of military options, as well as secondary considerations and associated impacts and risks, to the civilian leaders who make America’s security decisions.”
The president added that he will make the final call regarding military action, and repeated that he wants a deal with Iran, but warned that if there is not a deal “it will be a very bad day for that Country.”
“I am the one that makes the decision, I would rather have a Deal than not but, if we don’t make a Deal, it will be a very bad day for that Country and, very sadly, its people, because they are great and wonderful, and something like this should never have happened to them,” Trump said.
Trump also doubled down on his previous claims that Iran’s nuclear supply has been “obliterated” after last summer’s Operation Midnight Hammer, saying that it was “blown to smithereens.”
“He knows Iran well,” he said, referring to Caine, “in that he was in charge of Midnight Hammer, the attack on the Iranian Nuclear Development. It is a Development no longer, but rather, was blown to smithereens by our Great B-2 Bombers.” Trump said.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened Iran during a speech to the Knesset on Monday, warning the Iranian ayatollah if Iran strikes Israel, “we will respond with a force they cannot even imagine,” according to remarks of his speech google translated from Hebrew to English.
“No one knows what the day will bring. We are vigilant, we are prepared for any scenario,” Netanyahu said.
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address during a joint session of Congress in the House Chamber at the Capitol on February 24, 2026, in Washington, DC. Trump delivered his address days after the Supreme Court struck down the administration’s tariff strategy, and amid a U.S. military buildup in the Persian Gulf threatening Iran. (Photo by Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump on Monday claimed the U.S. was “very nearly under threat” from Iran, contradicting U.S. intelligence assessments as he sought to justify his administration’s ongoing attack.
“An Iranian regime armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would be an intolerable threat to the Middle East, but also to the American people,” Trump said at a medal of honor ceremony at the White House, marking his first public remarks on the military operation.
“Our country itself would be under threat, and it was very nearly under threat,” Trump continued.
American intelligence agencies, however, believe Iran would not have had missiles capable of reaching the U.S. for another nine years, until 2035.
And sources confirmed to ABC News that Trump administration officials told congressional staff that U.S. intelligence did not suggest Iran was preparing to launch a preemptive strike against the United States interests.
The officials said there was more of a general threat in the region from Iran’s missiles and proxy forces, sources told ABC News.
Still, Trump argued Iran would have “soon” had the capability to reach the American homeland and that “this was our last best chance to strike.”
“The regime already had missiles capable of hitting Europe and our bases, both local and overseas, and would soon have had missiles capable of reaching our beautiful America,” Trump said.
Trump, in Monday’s remarks, laid out U.S. objectives for the military campaign.
“Our objectives are clear,” Trump said. “First, we’re destroying Iran’s missile capabilities, and you see that happening on an hourly basis, and their capacity to produce brand new ones and pretty good ones they make. Second, we’re annihilating their navy. We’ve knocked out already 10 ships. They’re at the bottom of the sea. Third, we’re ensuring that the world’s number one sponsor of terror can never obtain a nuclear weapon … And finally, we’re ensuring that the Iranian regime cannot continue to arm, fund and direct terrorist armies outside of their borders.”
Trump notably did not address the issue of regime change after speaking extensively on leadership change over the weekend, as he called for Iranians to rise up and take over the government.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also shifted focus away from regime change in a press conference at the Pentagon earlier Monday, telling reporters the operation was not a “so-called regime-change war.”
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, was killed in an attack launched by Israel and the United States.
“The attack was so successful it knocked out most of the candidates,” Trump told ABC’s Karl. “It’s not going to be anybody that we were thinking of because they are all dead. Second or third place is dead.”
As for what’s next, Trump again promised not to drag the U.S. into prolonged foreign conflicts but said the operation will go on for as long as needed.
“We’re already substantially ahead of our time projections, but whatever the time is, it’s okay. Whatever it takes. We will always, and we have right from the beginning, we projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that. We’ll do it.”
“Somebody said today, they said, ‘Oh, well, the president wants to do it really quickly, after that, he’ll get bored.’ I don’t get bored,” Trump added. “There’s nothing boring about this.”
U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FLA) appears for a hearing of the House Ethics Committee on Capitol Hill on March 26, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Florida Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick’s fate as a member of the House of Representatives hangs in limbo as a potential expulsion vote looms this week.
The House Ethics Committee is set to hold a rare public hearing Tuesday afternoon to determine what sanction would be appropriate for the panel to recommend to the full House against Cherfilus-McCormick.
Expelling a member of the House is a rare occurrence. A two-thirds majority is required to remove a member.
Only six House members in U.S. history have been expelled from the lower chamber. Former New York Republican Rep. George Santos was the most recent lawmaker expelled from the House in 2023.
Last month, Cherfilus-McCormick was found guilty of 25 House ethics violations, including acceptance of improper campaign contributions and commingling of campaign and personal funds. The congresswoman was indicted in November 2025 by a federal grand jury on charges of stealing $5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency funds, which she is accused of laundering to support her successful 2021 congressional campaign.
Cherfilus-McCormick has denied wrongdoing — excusing the allegations as an accounting error. Also, she has insisted she won’t resign.
“For those asking whether I plan to resign, the answer is no. This is not the time to abandon the district, not when they too are fighting for their future,” she said in a statement last week.
The committee may recommend a range of sanctions, including expulsion, censure, reprimand, fine — and even denial or limitation of any right, according to House rules. The House may punish its members and may expel its members by a two-thirds vote, according to Article 1, Section 5 of the Constitution.
The sanction recommendation against Cherfilus-McCormick is expected to be announced in writing after the hearing, which is expected to last for approximately two hours pending no interruptions. Afterward, the panel will break into executive session to conclude its deliberations and reach a judgment.
The precise timing of when the committee will release its bipartisan decision is unclear.
Regardless of the panel’s recommendation, Florida Republican Rep. Greg Steube said he’ll move to force a vote to try to expel the congresswoman following the sanction hearing. Steube is expected to make the expulsion resolution privileged, which requires Speaker Mike Johnson to hold a vote on the matter within two-legislative days.
The speaker signaled last week that expelling Cherfilus-McCormick over her alleged crimes would be “appropriate.”
Though he initially insisted that Democrats would not help Republicans expel Cherfilus-McCormick, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries said on Monday that Democrats will convene a caucus meeting to determine how they’ll handle the the bipartisan Ethics panel’s recommendations.
