USS Gerald R. Ford enters Red Sea with destroyers

The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier and its strike group have transited the Suez Canal from the Eastern Mediterranean and are now operating in the Red Sea, escorted by two destroyers. A U.S. official told CNN the move is aimed at deterring Iranian aggression amid the ongoing Strait of Hormuz crisis. The carrier had spent over a month at Souda Bay, Greece, before redeploying to the region. This deployment signals a significant U.S. naval presence near key Middle Eastern waterways as tensions escalate.