US F 35, B 52 bombers conduct first mission of counter-Iran deployment (Photos)

US F 35 fighters and B 52 strategic bombers completed its first mission in patrolling the skies over the Persian Gulf by taking off from its new base in Qatar as a direct message to Iran.
The B-52 bombers, ordered by the White House to counter unspecified threats from Iran, arrived at a major American airbase in Qatar, the US Air Force stated on Friday.
Others landed at an undisclosed location Wednesday in “southwest Asia,” the Air Force said. The US military in the past has described its presence at both the al-Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates and al-Udeid as “southwest Asia.”
On Sunday, the White House announced it would send the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group and the bombers into the Arabian Gulf to counter Tehran. The Lincoln on Thursday passed through the Suez Canal on its way to the Persian Gulf.
The administration of President Donald Trump has not offered specific details of the threat allegedly presented by Iran.
The Air Force also published images on Monday of its F-15C Eagle and F-35A Lightning II strike aircraft flying “deterrence” missions in the region, as well as being refueled by a KC-135 Stratotanker aircraft.