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מקורות ל־CBS: ממשל טראמפ נערך לאפשרות של הצבת חיילים על אדמת איראן — Sources to CBS: the Trump administration prepares for the possibility of soldiers on Iranian soil
On March 20, 2026, the Hebrew site of the Israeli newspaper Haaretz published מקורות ל־CBS: ממשל טראמפ נערך לאפשרות של הצבת חיילים על אדמת איראן. The page prints the date 20 במרץ 2026. No byline appears in the text that loaded. Most of the article sits behind a subscription wall. The part that did load says the Trump administration was preparing for the possible use of soldiers on Iranian soil. An American family should care because "on Iranian soil" means their own soldiers inside another country. The same page says no decision had been made to send those forces into Iran itself.
Background for a new reader. The United States and Israel began bombing Iran on 28 February 2026; Washington calls its part Operation Epic Fury. Through March the argument in Washington was whether to add ground troops, meaning American soldiers physically inside Iran, to what had been an air and sea war. Israeli outlets, writing in Hebrew, Russian, Spanish, French and English, followed that argument closely and often passed on American reports to their readers. This page is one of those reports.
Evidence rating: MODERATE. Haaretz is relaying unnamed sources who spoke to CBS, Reuters, and the Wall Street Journal. The loaded text says commanders had filed requests and that thousands more troops were headed to the Middle East, and that no decision had yet been made to send them into Iran itself. The unread remainder of the Haaretz article is not used here.
What the article says
The headline says sources told CBS that the Trump administration was preparing for the possibility of placing soldiers on Iranian soil. The subheadline says sources told Reuters that the United States will send thousands more soldiers to the Middle East, including Marines. Marines are a US force that can land from the sea. The subheadline says that, according to those sources, no decision had been made on whether the forces would be sent into Iran itself. It says the soldiers would be positioned in the region to build the ability for future operations. It says the Wall Street Journal reported that the United States will also send three warships to the region.
The one body paragraph that loaded repeats the CBS claim and adds a few details.
ממשל טראמפ נערך לשימוש פוטנציאלי בחיילים על אדמת איראן, כך אמרו היום (שישי) מקורות המעורים בפרטים לערוץ CBS.
Haaretz, March 20, 2026. In English, that sentence says the Trump administration is preparing for the potential use of soldiers on Iranian soil, as sources familiar with the details told CBS that Friday.
Haaretz says those sources added that senior US commanders had submitted focused requests to the Pentagon, the headquarters of the US military, as part of preparing for that possibility. It says that, according to the report, it was not clear in what circumstances President Donald Trump would approve a ground operation in Iran. It says American sources told Reuters and the Wall Street Journal that the United States will send thousands more soldiers to the Middle East, including Marines. The page then stops. The rest did not load.
The CBS article, opened for this page, is the March 20, 2026 story Haaretz is citing. CBS says multiple sources said Pentagon officials had made detailed preparations for deploying US ground forces into Iran, and that senior commanders had submitted specific requests while Trump weighed his next moves. CBS says it was unclear when he would authorize troops on the ground. CBS quotes him telling reporters, "No, I'm not putting troops anywhere," and, "If I were, I certainly wouldn't tell you." CBS quotes White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt saying it is the Pentagon's job to prepare options, that this does not mean the president has made a decision, and that he was not planning to send ground troops anywhere at that time. CBS says elements of the 82nd Airborne Division, a US Army paratrooper unit, were being prepared for the Middle East region, and that about 2,200 Marines and three warships had left California, with another Marine unit still coming from the Pacific. Haaretz's loaded text does not mention the 82nd Airborne or Leavitt. Those details are on the CBS page, not in the Haaretz text that loaded. Reuters and the Wall Street Journal were not opened for this page. They appear only as Haaretz cites them.
What other reporting and posts add
- The Wall Street Journal piece Haaretz cites. FinancialJuice summarized the Journal on 20 March 2026: "The Pentagon is sending three warships and thousands of additional Marines to the Middle East, even as President Trump insists he won't put American boots on the ground in Iran, according to U.S. officials." It adds that "Roughly 2,200 to 2,500 Marines from the California-based USS Boxer amphibious ready group and 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit are heading to the U.S. Central Command." A Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is a Marine force of about 2,000 or more that lives on Navy ships and can land from the sea. Central Command (CENTCOM) is the US military headquarters for the Middle East. FinancialJuice on X. (capture: twitter/t50__v599.md)
- An Israeli English-language headline the same day. The Jerusalem Post ran the CBS report as "US military preparing for potential ground invasion of Iran" and posted: "The United States Pentagon has made preparations for deploying US ground forces into Iran, according to a CBS News report citing multiple senior sources." Jerusalem Post article; the post was shared by this account. The article body was not opened. (captures: twitter/t49__v581.md, twitter/t49__v579.md)
- Iran International repeated it. The Iranian exile outlet posted: "Pentagon officials have made detailed preparations for deploying American ground troops into Iran, CBS News reported Friday citing multiple sources." Iran International on X. A repetition, not a new source. (capture: twitter/t49__v587.md)
- The standard caveat, the same night. A news-intel account wrote that contingency planning "does not mean those plans are approved, imminent, or even likely to happen." Post. (capture: twitter/t49__v585.md) Eight days later the Washington Post reported the Pentagon preparing weeks of ground operations.
What it shows
Haaretz reported in Hebrew that the Trump administration was preparing to put soldiers on Iranian soil, with commanders' requests filed and thousands more troops and warships on the way. The Americans were told the opposite the same day: Trump and Leavitt said he was not sending ground troops "at that time" (No Boots on the Ground). The movements Haaretz describes were real, and the ground plans matured over the following week into the Washington Post's "weeks of ground operations" (Pentagon Ground Plans 2026).
Check it yourself
Research captures: twitter/t50__v599.md, twitter/t49__v581.md, twitter/t49__v579.md, twitter/t49__v587.md, twitter/t49__v585.md
Last Updated: 2026-09-26