Thousands Of Camp Pendleton Troops Deploy To Middle East On USS Boxer

CAMP PENDLETON, CA — San Diego-based U.S. troops are headed to the Middle East as the conflict with Iran continues.

The 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which consists of at least 2,200 Marines based at Camp Pendleton, has deployed ahead of schedule aboard the USS Boxer amphibious assault ship, NBC News reported.

A Navy spokesperson told NBC 7 the deployment is a routine operation in the Indo-Pacific.

Members of the Marine Expeditionary Unit are trained for crisis response.

The deployment comes as President Donald Trump has been circumspect about plans to send troops to fight in the Middle East as the conflict with Iran pulls in surrounding countries and shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Overall, the U.S. military is deploying three more warships and roughly 2,500 more marines to the Middle East, where there's no end to the war in sight despite three weeks of U.S. and Israeli air strikes that have decimated Iran's military and leadership.

The death toll has risen to more than 1,300 people in Iran, more than 1,000 people in Lebanon, 15 in Israel and 13 U.S. military members in the region. Millions of people in Lebanon and Iran have been displaced.

Capt. Tim Hawkins, the spokesman for U.S. Central Command, told The Associated Press that 232 service members have been injured in the Middle East.

That's 30 more than a previous military tally of roughly 200 from Monday.

Hawkins said 207 of the 232 injured have already returned to duty. The number of service members that are considered seriously wounded has remained at 10.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.