WASHINGTON, Jan 3: The Pentagon has ordered some units of the 45,000-member US First Marine Expeditionary Force to deploy from California to the Gulf region to join thousands of other American troops preparing for a possible invasion of Iraq, defence officials said on Friday.

Spokesmen at the Marine Force headquarters in Camp Pendleton, California, confirmed that an order to deploy “elements” of the big force was received this week, but would not say how many or exactly when and where they would go.

But other defence officials said troops, aircraft and equipment from the MEF would begin moving to the Gulf region soon.

The US army is already preparing to deploy more than 11,000 soldiers from the Third Infantry Division in the state of Georgia as well as hundreds of engineers and intelligence specialists from Germany to the Gulf in a new year surge of troops, warplanes and ships in case President George Bush orders an invasion of Iraq. Nearly 60,000 US soldiers are in the Gulf and that number could double in coming weeks.

Bush warned Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on Thursday that his “day of reckoning is coming”.

BUSH ‘HOPEFUL’: US President George Bush said on Thursday he was “hopeful” of averting a war with Iraq, but warned President Saddam Hussein that “his day of reckoning” was looming.