The Wall Street Journal reported that the possible deployment would include “dozens” more ships and double the number of troops added to the US force in the region since the beginning of this year, citing unnamed US officials.

 

The paper said Trump could make a decision on the troop boost as early as this month.

 

The Pentagon had denied the report on Wednesday, saying that “To be clear, the reporting is wrong. The US is not considering sending 14,000 additional troops to the Middle East.”

 

A series of attacks on shipping vessels and attacks on two Saudi oil installations in September that were blamed on Iran have led to increased tensions in the region. The US has already ramped up its military presence in the Gulf and tightened economic sanction on Tehran, further elevating tensions across the region.