Pentagon Orders Nimitz Aircraft Carrier to Remain in Gulf

The United States’ aircraft carrier USS Nimitz will remain in the Middle East due to threats from Iran, the Pentagon announced.

“Due to the recent threats issued by Iranian leaders against President Trump and other U.S. government officials, I have ordered the USS Nimitz to halt its routine redeployment.  The USS Nimitz will now remain on station in the U.S. Central Command area of operations.  No one should doubt the resolve of the United States of America,” US Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller said in a statement issued on Sunday.

The order comes three days after Miller had ordered the Nimitz to redeploy to its home port in Washington State, reportedly to de-escalate tensions with Iran, despite objections from military advisers, the New York Times reported. The order also comes as Iran has ramped up threats against the United States over the assassination one year ago by a US drone of Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani, head of the Quds Force, the foreign operations arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.