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U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reinforced U.S. military capabilities in the Middle East with additional warplanes, the Pentagon said on Tuesday, amid a more than two-week-old U.S. bombing campaign in Yemen and mounting tensions with Iran. The Pentagon's brief statement did not specify which aircraft were being deployed or where precisely they were sent.
"Should Iran or its proxies threaten American personnel and interests in the region, the United States will take decisive action to defend our people," Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei vowed on Monday that any American action would meet with an Iranian response. “The Zionist entity and the Americans will suffer a severe and powerful blow if they take any hostile action,” Khamenei said in a speech during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.
Revolutionary Guards Aerospace Commander Amirali Hajizadeh threatened U.S. forces, noting the vulnerability of American bases in the Middle East. "They are in a glass house and should not throw stones," Hajizadeh said.
Just one hour after the Pentagon’s announcement, Houthi rebels claimed to have attacked the USS Harry Truman aircraft carrier for the third time in 24 hours. Earlier attack claims targeting the carrier have not been confirmed by the Pentagon.
As many as six B-2 bombers have relocated in recent days to a U.S.-British military base on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia, according to U.S. officials speaking on condition of anonymity. Experts say this deployment places the B-2s—which feature stealth technology and are capable of carrying America's heaviest conventional and nuclear weapons—in an ideal position for Middle East operations.
The U.S. military's Strategic Command has declined to say how many B-2s have reached Diego Garcia and noted that it does not comment on exercises or operations involving the B-2.
The Middle East already hosts considerable U.S. firepower, and soon two aircraft carriers will be in the region following orders earlier this week for the USS Carl Vinson to deploy to CENTCOM. The Pentagon has not specified the carriers' exact locations, but Hegseth has ordered increased deployments of U.S. forces to the region.
U.S. President Donald Trump threatened Iran on Sunday with bombing and secondary tariffs if Tehran did not come to an agreement with Washington over its nuclear program. "If they don't make a deal, there will be bombing," Trump said in a telephone interview with NBC. "There will be bombs like they've never seen before."
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While B-2 bombers have been employed to strike buried Houthi targets in Yemen, most experts say the use of the stealthy bomber is overkill there and the targets aren't buried so deeply.
However, the B-2 is equipped to carry America's most potent bomb — the 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator. That is the weapon that experts say could be used to strike Iran's nuclear program.
There are only 20 B-2 bombers in the Air Force's inventory so they are usually used sparingly.
One official told Reuters that the U.S. military was also moving some air defense capabilities from Asia to the Middle East.