According to CBS, US intelligence picked up reports between Iranian agents of an imminent attack on US forces in the Middle East, specifically in Iraq. The threat was allegedly targeting US troops at sea and on land. In response to the threat, US National Security Advisor John Bolton said the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group was being deployed to the US Central Command region following “a number of troubling and escalatory indications and warnings”.
Mr Bolton said: “The United States is not seeking war with the Iranian regime, but we are fully prepared to respond to any attack, whether by proxy, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or regular Iranian forces.”
But David Martin, CBS News National Security Correspondent, said the US military may require further military force in the region.
Mr Martin said: “Even once they get to the Persian Gulf the build-up might not be over.
“The Pentagon is expecting requests for additional air defence units to protect against the threat of an Iranian missile attack.”
Speaking to Fox News over the weekend, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed the deployments have been in the works for “a little while.”
Mr Pompeo said: “We will hold the Iranians accountable for attacks on American interests.
“And the fact that if those actions take place, if they do by some third-party proxy, a Shiite militia group, the Houthis or Hezbollah, we will hold the Iranian leadership directly accountable for that.”
Tensions between the two states have soared in recent weeks following President Trump decision to label Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist group.
In retaliation, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the US was the “leader of world terrorism”.
Military expert Peter Brookes, a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, said the threat could have contributed to the military activity from Iran.
Mr Brookes told Fox News: “It’s not sure that this actually was something that was put into motion. But certainly you are right.
“Those are great reasons from Iran’s perspective as to why they are angry with the United States.
“We put the IRGC on the terrorism list. The maximum pressure campaign, as a business network, you know how much damage this is having to the Iranian economy.”
He added: “So, yeah, I think they may be spoiling for some kind of fight.”
Last week, the US eliminated waivers for some countries to buy Iranian oil and avoid US sanctions.
Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said US sanctions against Iran were “economic terrorism”.
He told Al Jazeera: “They want to put pressure on the Iranian people in order to change their policy.
“That is the way the United States has acted for 40 years and particularly since President Trump came to office.
“It violated a commitment by another US President, President Obama.”