Pentagon sending 4,000-plus personnel to Middle East

More than 4,000 personnel

The Pentagon is sending more than 4,000 Marines and sailors aboard three warships to the Middle East. The ships are joining a growing Navy presence in the U.S. Central Command theater. The total covers Marines and sailors together, rather than more than 4,000 members of each service.

The USS Makin Island is the flagship of the amphibious readiness group involved in the movement. It is a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship. As the flagship, the Makin Island is the lead vessel identified for the three-warship group. The personnel will travel aboard the ships, tying the service member movement directly to the Navy’s increase in vessels in the region.

A departure from San Diego

The Makin Island was spotted departing San Diego on Monday. Its departure marks a concrete movement in the wider buildup, while the Pentagon’s action covers all three warships and the combined Marine and sailor force.

The Pentagon is sending the force to the region. The Monday sighting concerns the Makin Island’s departure from San Diego, not an arrival of the full group in the Middle East. The development has two defined parts: a deployment of more than 4,000 personnel aboard three ships and the observed departure of the group’s flagship. Both are part of the Navy buildup in the Central Command theater.