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The US has a huge buildup of ships in the Middle East.
17:21, Tue, Feb 3, 2026 Updated: 17:58, Tue, Feb 3, 2026
US Navy (Image: Getty)
The US Navy has reportedly shot down an Iranian drone that was approaching the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Middle East on Tuesday. In a statement the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said an unmaned aircraft aggressively approached a US Navy aircraft carrier with unclear intent.
The USS Abraham Lincoln was transiting the Arabian Sea approximately 500 miles from Iran’s southern coastline when an Iranian Shahed-139 drone maneuvered toward the carrier and persisted in its approach despite de-escalatory measures by US forces in international waters. An F-35C fighter jet from Abraham Lincoln shot down the Iranian Shahed-139 drone in self-defense and to protect the aircraft carrier and personnel on board. There were no injuries to US personnel and no damage to American equipment, confirmed CENTCOM.
President Donald Trump has been ramping up pressure on Iran for weeks, threatening the Tehran regime with military action. Last week the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft-carrier group entered the Central Command’s zone of responsibility. T
he giant ship is a nuclear-powered supercarrier which typically carries between 60 to 90 aircraft on board.
Trump told Axios last week that the situation in Iran was "in flux," and that the American military presence in the waters near Iran was bigger than the one he had deployed near Venezuela.
“We have a big armada next to Iran. Bigger than Venezuela,” he said. A senior Iranian official previously warned that any attack would be treated as “all-out war,” pledging a response to any violation of Iran’s sovereignty.
The deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln and its escorting destroyers provides the US with the ability to strike Iran, even as Gulf Arab states hosting American troops signal they want to remain outside any conflict
Equipped with over 70 F-35C and F/A-18 jets, the USS Abraham Lincoln can carry out missions from air superiority to precision strikes.
Supported by destroyers armed with Tomahawk missiles and Aegis radar systems, the carrier strike group represents a formidable presence, especially as tensions with Iran rise.
Earlier today Iran’s president said he had instructed his foreign minister to pursue “fair and equitable negotiations” with the US, amid reports that senior officials from both countries will meet in Istanbul later this week for talks on Iran’s nuclear programme.
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President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a post on X: “I have instructed my minister of foreign affairs, provided that a suitable environment exists – one free from threats and unreasonable expectations – to pursue fair and equitable negotiations, guided by the principles of dignity, prudence, and expediency.”
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