NEW YORK, March 18. /TASS/. The United States is reportedly deploying an additional 2,200 troops to the Middle East, CNN reported.

According to the broadcaster, the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli is en route from a US base in Okinawa. Up to 2,200 service members from a US Marine Corps expeditionary unit may be aboard the vessel. The ship reached Singapore on Tuesday, the report said.

Earlier reports indicated that the US force grouping in the Middle East numbers around 50,000 personnel.

The United States and Israel launched a military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. The White House justified the attack by citing alleged missile and nuclear threats from Iran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel. US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE were also hit. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and some other key Iranian leaders were killed in the joint US-Israeli attack.