The United States is sending about 9,000 troops on a naval flotilla to the Middle East, a build-up that could put three aircraft carriers in the region by late October or November, as President Donald Trump warns of fresh strikes on Iran.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt left San Diego on September 27 for a deployment expected to last seven to eight months. It sails with Carrier Strike Group 9, which carries more than 7,000 sailors and 2,000 Marines. The USS George H.W. Bush and USS George Washington are already in the region, and the Washington is due to be relieved. With the personnel already there, the US presence would exceed 20,000 sailors and Marines and hundreds of aircraft, one of the largest concentrations of American naval power in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

The deployment comes as the war that began on February 28 remains deadlocked. IntelliNews reported earlier on a US carrier strike group heading for the Persian Gulf, and on 17,000 US troops arriving for a possible ground invasion of Iran. Trump previously floated a 15-point ceasefire plan and warned Iran's time was running out as the truce faltered.

In an interview with Time published on October 1, Trump said it was "possible" he would escalate bombing of Iran after the November 3 midterms. He said he had rejected Tehran's latest ceasefire proposal as "not good enough", even though it included an offer to "open up" the Strait of Hormuz. Iranian officials said on September 30 they had received a formal US reply. Trump has also reinstated a Hormuz blockade on Iranian shipping, although the Financial Times found dozens of tankers still passing through, and UKMTO reported three tankers struck in the strait.

On October 1, Trump told reporters that early indications suggest Iran is linked to the Flydubai co-pilot who stabbed his captain and tried to crash an Israel-bound flight on September 30.

Asked whether the suspect had ties to Tehran, he said "yes" based on what he was hearing, adding that if a link is established "they'll be hit very hard". Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, without giving details, said the attacker had undergone "Islamist indoctrination".

Iran's state-run Press TV cited an unnamed "well-informed regional source" as claiming that Netanyahu orchestrated a "false flag" plot to draw the US into a new war, finalised during a secret visit to the UAE three days earlier. Israel, the UAE and the US had no immediate comment.

A regional official confirmed the suspect, an Omani national, is in custody. Saudi Arabia, which handed him over to the UAE, is coordinating with Israel, the UAE, the US and Oman to establish a motive.

The US Treasury sanctioned Iran's rail and automotive sectors and their foreign suppliers, widening wartime economic pressure on Tehran, on October 1. It has previously targeted Iran's shadow fleet and its shadow banking network.

The build-up follows the completion on September 30 of the US withdrawal from Iraq after a 12-year mission against Islamic State. The Pentagon said the last troops left Erbil air base, and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi presided over the handover. Trump hailed the exit as a "victory". IntelliNews reported that Baghdad had confirmed the withdrawal deadline.

Iran-backed Iraqi militias celebrated the departure. The Kurdistan Region's Peshmerga ministry said leaving without an air defence system was "a matter of concern". The region has faced more than 1,000 drone and missile attacks during the war. Al-Zaidi has also pushed the militia disarmament deadline back from September 2026 to June 2027.