Trump says US ‘armada’ moving closer to Iran amid rising tensions, strikes not ruled out yet? What we know

As tensions escalate in Iran following widespread protests, President Trump announced the deployment of an American aircraft carrier group to the region.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday said an American aircraft carrier group is moving closer to the Middle East amid now-subsided protests and the resultant government crackdown in Iran. This statement came after human rights activists claimed close to 5,000 deaths in the region, intensifying tensions between Washington and Tehran.

Military presence escalates tensions between US and Iran as human rights groups report over 5,000 deaths amid crackdown on protests. (AP)

Rights groups feared the real number of deaths could be even higher because it is very hard to get information out of Iran right now due to the internet shutdown across the nation.

In this light, President Trump said that a big group of American warships, which he called an “armada,” is moving closer to the Middle East. He said the ships are there “just in case,” meaning the US might use them if the situation gets worse, news agency AP reported. Experts said this means military strikes are probably not completely ruled out yet, even though no attack has happened so far.

A group that studies global security said that while Trump may be careful about starting a war, the movement of so many military ships shows that force could still be used. Trump said he hopes they will not be needed, but they are ready. He also warned Iran that future attacks could be much stronger than past ones.

Death toll a suspense?

A US-based human rights group, which estimated around 5,000 deaths, said 4,716 of them were demonstrators, 203 were government-affiliated, 43 were children and 40 were civilians who were not part of the protests. The group added that more than 26,800 people had been detained. Iran’s government has however shared a lower number of deaths, which is 3,117 and said some of those killed were “terrorists.”

Because reporters cannot freely work in Iran and the internet is blocked, news agencies said they cannot independently check the exact number of deaths.

Trump has warned Iran not to hurt peaceful protesters or carry out mass executions. Some people arrested have been called “enemies of God,” a charge that can lead to the death penalty, the AP report stated.

Other countries are watching closely too. The UK has also said it has sent fighter jets to the Gulf area to protect against rising tensions.

(With AP inputs)