Dubai: A US aircraft carrier ordered by the White House to rapidly deploy to the Mideast over a perceived threat from Iran has transited the Strait of Hormuz for the first time since its deployment. The US Navy says the USS Abraham Lincoln transited the strait on Tuesday, making its way to the Persian Gulf. The carrier left Norfolk, VA, in April and was diverted to the Middle East in May, but it had remained in the Arabian Sea, avoiding passage through the strait that borders Iran.

American aircraft carriers have for decades sailed through the international oil shipping route in what the US describes as 'defensive' operations aimed at keeping the strait open. The Trump administration deployed the Lincoln to the Persian Gulf amid a spike in tensions with Iran.