Updated

The United States has significantly escalated its military posture against Iran, sending a third aircraft carrier strike group (the Roosevelt) toward the Middle East along with roughly 50,000 troops, F-35 fighters, Marines, and 2,000 additional Marine reinforcements. The buildup comes amid an ongoing US-Iran standoff following earlier strikes and a stalled nuclear negotiation, with Washington seeking to pressure Tehran. Separately, an oil supertanker was reportedly hit by a missile in the Strait of Hormuz, roughly eight kilometers off the coast of Oman, according to Iran's Fars news agency, which did not attribute blame. The attack is the latest in a string of incidents in the strategic waterway, with UK Maritime Trade Operations logging multiple incidents in a single day, raising fears of a wider shipping crisis as tensions between the US, Israel and Iran continue to simmer.