Donald Trump has said he wants to “take the oil in Iran” – as thousands of US troops head to the Middle East, bringing the total American headcount in the region to as many as 50,000.The President revealed on Sunday that he could take Kharg Island, Iran’s vital oil export hub, “very easily”.He told the FT: “To be honest with you, my favourite thing is to take the oil in Iran – but some stupid people back in the US say: ‘Why are you doing that?’ But they’re stupid people.”Maybe we take Kharg Island, maybe we don’t. We have a lot of options.
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“It would also mean we had to be there for a while… I don’t think they have any defence. We could take it very easily.”So far, the Pentagon has ordered the deployment of 10,000 troops specially trained to seize and hold land.Some 3,500 troops arrived in the Middle East on Friday, including around 2,200 Marines.Another 2,200 Marines are now on their way, with thousands of troops from the 82nd Airborne Division also ordered to the region.That has brought the number of American soldiers in the Middle East past 50,000, the New York Times reported on Sunday night – 10,000 more than usual.US officials have said the Pentagon is preparing for weeks of ground operations in Iran, though it remains unclear whether Mr Trump would approve such plans.Defence chiefs are understood to be eyeing special forces raids alongside conventional infantry operations.One source indicated the operations being considered would require “weeks, not months”.LATEST FROM IRAN:Houthis enter Iran war and launch missiles at Israel as Britons warned of FURTHER oil price risesIran ‘readies one million troops in preparation for massive US ground invasion’Vladimir Putin risks direct conflict with American troops as Russia sends barrage of drones to IranHowever, a further insider estimated the timeframe at “a couple of months.”The war has now reached its second month, and so far shows few signs of slowing down.Israel’s military said it had launched over 140 air strikes on central and western Iran, including Tehran, over the 24 hours to Sunday evening, hitting ballistic missile launch sites and storage facilities, among other targets.In the early hours of Monday morning, UK time, Mr Trump said on social media that it had been a “big day in Iran”.”Many long-sought-after targets have been taken out and destroyed by our GREAT MILITARY, the finest and most lethal in the world,” he added.However, the President has also hinted that indirect talks between the US and Iran via Pakistani “emissaries” were progressing well, opening the door to a potential off-ramp and negotiations.He has set an April 6 deadline of April 6 for Iran to accept a deal to end the war.If it fails to do so, the US will unleash strikes on its energy sector.However, the talks have met a stumbling block: The fact that US and Israeli strikes in the opening days of the war eliminated much of Tehran’s leadership.”The people we’re dealing with are a totally different group of people… very professional,” Mr Trump said.Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the dead Ayatollah Ali, has been mysteriously absent amid the war.”The son is either dead or in extremely bad shape,” the President said. “We’ve not heard from him at all. He’s gone.”Tehran insists its head of state is safe and well.
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