Hassan Nasrallah

Force in Play

Leads Hezbollah amid multi-front proxy pressure

The USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group has operated in the Arabian Sea since late January 2026, joined by USS Gerald R. Ford in the Mediterranean and USS George H.W. Bush, creating triple-carrier presence amid Iran's crackdown on December 2025 protests. On February 25, the U.S. deployed 12 F-22 Raptors to Israel's Ovda Airbase alongside KC-46 tankers—the largest Middle East buildup since 2003. On February 28, U.S.-Israel 'Operation Epic Fury' struck Iranian nuclear sites, navy, and infrastructure, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iran retaliated March 1 with attacks on 27 U.S. bases, Israeli sites, and Gulf states. Hezbollah opened a Lebanon front March 2. By March 25, the Pentagon deployed 2,000-3,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division's Immediate Response Force to supplement 50,000+ U.S. service members already in the region, bringing total ground forces to 6,000-8,000 near Iran.

Updated Mar 26

Force in Play

Killed in Israeli airstrike September 27, 2024

Lebanon's army says it now controls the south—except for five hilltops Israel refuses to give up. On January 8, 2026, the military announced it had completed phase one of disarming Hezbollah and other militias south of the Litani River, bringing weapons under state control for the first time in 40 years. Over 9,000 soldiers swept the war-battered region, clearing unexploded ordnance and tunnels left from the devastating 2024 war that killed 4,000 people and displaced 1.3 million. Hours later, Iran's foreign minister arrived in Beirut for tense talks, and the next day Israel resumed strikes across southern Lebanon—business as usual despite the milestone announcement.

Updated Jan 10