U.S. deploys aircraft carrier to send 'clear and unmistakable message' to Iran

The USS Abraham Lincoln and a bomber task force have been deployed to the Middle East in order to "send a clear and unmistakable message to the Iranian regime that any attack on United States interests or on those of our allies will be met with unrelenting force," National Security Adviser John Bolton said in a statement released Sunday night.

A U.S. official told ABC News that it was decided on Sunday that the aircraft carrier strike group and bomber task force should be deployed, following "clear indications" that Iran and Iranian proxies were planning for a possible attack against American forces in the region.

"It's something we've been working on for a little while," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told reporters on Sunday. "It is absolutely the case that we have seen escalatory actions from the Iranians, and it is equally the case that we will hold the Iranians accountable for attacks on American interests."

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