The Washington Post spoke with US officials who said the Department of War is preparing for an invasion of Iran with American troops remaining on the ground for weeks. 

US officials told the outlet that the thousands of soldiers and Marines arriving in the Middle East could be used in a ground invasion of Iran, with the Pentagon developing plans for American troops to occupy Iranian territory for weeks. 

President Donald Trump has ordered two Marine Expeditionary Units, about 2,500 troops each, and 3,000 soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East in recent weeks. Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported the White House was considering sending an additional 10,000 troops. 

The officials told The Washington Post that any ground operations in Iran would be short of a full-scale invasion and would focus on small-scale raids. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to the report, saying that the President has not made a final decision. 

Two US officials confirmed to Axios that the Pentagon was developing plans for a “final blow” against Iran. The options for Trump will include an invasion or blockading the island that serves as Tehran’s main oil export hub, invading an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz, seizing islands that are controlled by Iran but claimed by the UAE, and blocking or seizing vessels carrying Iranian oil. Iran said that it will respond to a ground invasion by asking Ansar Allah in Yemen to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Ansar Allah previously closed the shipping lane that controls one end of the Red Sea to US and Israeli-linked shipping in response to the genocide in Gaza. 

Last week, Yemen fired a missile at Israel for the first time during the current war.