U.S. Naval Armada heading towards Iran

[XXPANTHAXX]

Growing threat - Join us in mobilizing to Stop War on Iran!

As we write, the arrival of new U.S. warships will mark the largest
build-up of Naval forces in the Gulf since the 1991 Gulf War.

The aircraft carriers USS Theodore Roosevelt and the USS Ronald Reagan,
along with the USS Iwo Jima, an Amphibious Assault Ship are sailing
toward the Persian Gulf to reinforce the US strike forces in the region,
along with a British Royal Navy carrier battle group and a French
nuclear hunter-killer submarine.

This move follows the ominous Operation Brimstone, a massive military
exercise involving more than a dozen warships from the US, England, and
France in the Atlantic Ocean in preparation for a possible confrontation
with Iran.

The USS Roosevelt, which participated in the just-concluded exercise,
and the USS Ronald Reagan will join two US naval battle groups in the
area: the USS Abraham Lincoln with its Carrier Strike Group Nine; and
the USS Peleliu, and Amphibious Assault Ship with its expeditionary
strike group.

Naval forces now heading towards the Gulf include:

Carrier Strike Group Nine:
USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN72) nuclear powered carrier with its Carrier Air
Wing Two
Destroyer Squadron Nine:
USS Mobile Bay (CG53) guided missile cruiser
USS Russell (DDG59) guided missile destroyer
USS Momsen (DDG92) guided missile destroyer
USS Shoup (DDG86) guided missile destroyer
USS Ford (FFG54) guided missile frigate
USS Ingraham (FFG61) guided missile frigate
USS Rodney M. Davis (FFG60) guided missile frigate
USS Curts (FFG38) guided missile frigate
Plus one or more nuclear hunter-killer submarines
Peleliu Expeditionary Strike Group:
USS Peleliu (LHA-5) a Tarawa-class amphibious assault carrier
USS Pearl Harbor (LSD52) assult ship
USS Dubuque (LPD8) assult ship/landing dock
USS Cape St. George (CG71) guided missile cruiser
USS Halsey (DDG97) guided missile destroyer
USS Benfold (DDG65) guided missile destroyer

Carrier Strike Group Two:
USS Theodore Roosevelt (DVN71) nuclear powered carrier with its Carrier
Air Wing Eight
Destroyer Squadron 22:
USS Monterey (CG61) guided missile cruiser
USS Mason (DDG87) guided missile destroyer
USS Nitze (DDG94) guided missile destroyer
USS Sullivans (DDG68) guided missile destroyer
USS Springfield (SSN761) nuclear powered hunter-killer submarine
IWO ESG ~ Iwo Jima Expeditionary Strike Group
USS Iwo Jima (LHD7) amphibious assault carrier with its Amphibious
Squadron Four
and with its 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit
USS San Antonio (LPD17) assault ship
USS Velia Gulf (CG72) guided missile cruiser
USS Ramage (DDG61) guided missile destroyer
USS Carter Hall (LSD50) assault ship
USS Roosevelt (DDG80) guided missile destroyer
USS Hartfore (SSN768) nuclear powered hunter-killer submarine

Carrier Strike Group Seven:
USS Ronald Reagan (CVN76) nuclear powered carrier with its Carrier Air
Wing 14
Destroyer Squadron 7:
USS Chancellorsville (CG62) guided missile cruiser
USS Howard (DDG83) guided missile destroyer
USS Gridley (DDG101) guided missile destroyer
USS Decatur (DDG73) guided missile destroyer
USS Thach (FFG43) guided missile frigate
USNS Rainier (T-AOE-7) fast combat support ship

This massive deployment means that hundreds of nuclear-armed warplanes,
thousands of troops, and destroyers capable of launching cruise missiles
carrying nuclear weapons, bunker busters, or fragmentation bombs will be
available for a strike on Iran. While Russia is bogged down with the
crisis in Georgia, and China is occupied with the Olympics, the Bush
Administration may believe that this is an opportune time to strike.
This massive deployment is occurring as both Houses of Congress are set
to approve resolutions that would mandate a U.S. blockade (which is an
act of war under international law).

The time to act is now:

Please sign the petition online at
StopWarOnIran.org -- Stop the War on Iran Before it Starts!

And please help us get the word out - use the Tell a Friend Link at
StopWarOnIran.org -- Stop the War on Iran Before it Starts!

Also, in the next few days and weeks, we will be mobilizing in the
streets against an attack on Iran. As we write, we are preparing
placards, banners, and printed material to take to the Republican and
Democratic national conventions. We know that the only force that will
stop the warmongers in Washington is a grassroots peoples movement. We
need your help to take the message to the conventions and to mobilize
for other emergency actions. Please consider making a donation to help
with expenses at StopWarOnIran.org -- Stop the War on Iran Before it Starts!