The Pentagon is preparing to send more U.S. forces and assets to the Middle East. NBC writes this after it became known that the Lincoln aircraft carrier is moving from the China Sea to the Middle East. According to NBC’s source, it would be a strike group of aircraft carriers, additional aircraft and land-based air defense systems.
The military will also need to ensure that the military is ready should Iran attack US bases in the region or US allies in the region. The equipment and thousands of additional forces will arrive in the coming days and weeks, the official added.
Iran, the official version after the protests
Iranian police chief Brigadier General Ahmad-Reza Radan said order had been restored after days of protests that rocked the country. Speaking to Press TV, reported by Haaretz, Ahmad-Reza Radan said that cooperation between the population and the security forces was fundamental to quelling the unrest, saying that it “gave new life to the forces on the ground” and was “the secret of this victory”. “By the grace of God and with the conscious presence of the people, the final nail has been driven into the coffin of terrorism,” Radan said.
“I will return to Iran, I am the only one who can guarantee the transition.” Reza Pahlavi, son of the last shah, said this at a press conference in Washington, adding that his name is invoked by Iranian protesters. Reza Pahlavi said he was certain that the power of the ayatollahs in the Islamic Republic “will fall”. «The Islamic Republic will fall, it is not a question of “if, but when”: Reza Pahlavi said this during a press conference in Washington.
Internet ban extended until Nowruz
Iranian authorities have decided to extend the ban on internet access at least until Nowruz, the Persian New Year, at the end of March. This was reported by several Israeli media, citing the Iranian agency IRNA.
Iranian Communications Minister Issa Zarepour made the announcement on state television: the nationwide Internet shutdown imposed on December 28 will continue indefinitely for “security reasons” and a complete restoration is not expected before Nowruz, he said, according to various media reports.