US deploys fighter jets over Iran as 'warning'

United States Navy fighter jets flew missions from an aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea on Saturday, a signal to Iran of America's global military reach.

The USS Abraham Lincoln carries a fighting force is about 70 jets, and is currently in international waters some 200 miles off Iran's southern coastline.

The aircraft carrier was deployed to the Arabian Sea a month ago, although there's no immediate sign that it intends to move into the Gulf.

The Lincoln is the centerpiece of Washington's response to what it calls Iranian threats to attack US forces or commercial shipping in the Gulf region.

Its contingent of F-18 Super Hornets are flying a carefully calibrated set of missions off the carrier night and day, mainly to establish a visible US presence.  

The head of the US Navy's Central Command said he believed that if the Pentagon hadn't bolstered its military presence in the region, an attack might have taken place by now.

Last month, US President Donald Trump's national security adviser warned Iran that any attacks in the Persian Gulf will draw a "very strong response" from the US, taking a hard-line approach with Tehran after his boss only two days earlier said America wasn't "looking to hurt Iran at all."

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