Speculation is growing that the U.S. Army's elite airborne division headquarters could be deployed for a ground war against Iran after the service abruptly canceled a large-scale exercise by the command in recent days.
The Washington Post (WP) reported on the 6th (local time) that an exercise involving the U.S. Army's 82nd Airborne Division headquarters had recently been canceled. The unit is the core headquarters organization that coordinates operational planning and execution in a division responsible for ground combat and special missions.
Other soldiers from the division are training in Louisiana, but the headquarters staff were instructed to remain at their home base in North Carolina instead of taking part in the exercise.
As of this day, no official deployment order had been issued. However, sources said the Army is expected to announce soon a plan to deploy a helicopter unit from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East, with the actual deployment to take place in late spring.
A person familiar with the matter said, "We are all preparing something just in case."
WP said there is also speculation that the division's Immediate Response Force (IRF) could be tapped, given the symbolic role the 82nd Airborne Division has played in past conflicts.
The Immediate Response Force was deployed for the 2020 killing of Iran's power broker Soleimani, the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal operation, and the defense of the Eastern European front just before Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Regarding reports of a deployment of the elite airborne division, the U.S. Department of Defense declined to release related details in a statement, saying, "For operational security reasons, we do not comment on future movements or hypothetical movements."
Over the past week, U.S. forces have focused on airstrikes to hit Iran's missile arsenals, drones, and naval vessels. Fighters and bombers are flying directly over Iranian airspace and dropping bombs.
U.S. President Donald Trump drew a line by saying U.S. ground forces would "probably not be necessary" for military operations against Iran, but he has not completely ruled out the possibility of deploying them.
White House Spokesperson Karoline Leavitt also answered on the 4th, when reporters asked whether the United States is considering sending ground troops to Iran, "At this time, it is not part of the operational plan," while adding that President Trump "will not take options (military) off the table."
In fact, President Trump showed deep interest in deploying U.S. ground forces inside Iran in private conversations, NBC News reported the same day, citing government officials and other sources.
According to the sources, Trump has discussed the idea of deploying ground forces with aides and Republican figures. However, the focus has been on using small U.S. detachments for specific strategic purposes rather than a large-scale, full invasion.
The sources added that Trump has not made any decisions or issued any orders regarding ground forces.