The US Air Force has sent a chilling message to Iran after sending warplanes armed with 'bunker busting' bombs.
The US military confirmed it has dispatched powerful 250-pound bombs on A-10 Warthogs in a bid to give pilots a better chance of deterring Iran by destroying ammunition bunkers.
Forces have been repeatedly attacked by Iran-backed fighters and, according to officials, it is the first time precision-guided weapons have been onboard the warplanes.
The Warthogs have also recently been refitted in order to carry up to 16 bunker bombs, which are known as GBU-39/B bombs.
Air Force Lt. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, who oversees U.S. military operations in the skies above Syria, said via the Wall Street Journal: "The A-10s are highly effective at some of the things we need to do."
The bombs come amid rising tensions with Iran after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps detained an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman as it carried liquids to the US from Kuwait.
The tanker has remained there since Friday after Iran claimed it crashed with an Iranian ship in the Gulf and tried to escape.
However, the US Navy claims it has violated international law by detaining the ship and has called for it to be released immediately.
The Pentagon were forced to dispatch 12 planes to the Middle East last month after Iran-backed forces carried out multiple attacks on US bases in Syria.
President Biden ordered airstrikes on Iran-backed forces after one suicide-drone killed an American contractor.
The new bombs are part of a bigger effort to increase American military presence, according to Mr Grynkewich.
He said US officials are increasingly worried of attacks by Iran and its allies across the region.
And just last month, the US military announced a guided-missile submarine in the Middle East after receiving intelligence that Iran was prepared to carry out a drone attack on a ship in the local region.
But the concerns eased after the USS Florida, which can carry 150 Tomahawk missiles, turned up in the Red Sea as a deterrent.
President Biden has ordered a series of airstrikes targeting Syria since taking office in a bid to increase the attack capability on the Warthogs.
The Pentagon claim this will give them the ability to carry precision-guided bombs and have more firepower than F-15 jet fighters.
