Good evening from the newsroom, topping tonight's CNN global war coverage new reporting

that more than more troops, thousands more, heading into the region, expected to arrive just

as the ceasefire runs out six days from now.

The Washington Post has the story.

There is the headline.

Quoting the key passage, the forces moving into the region

include about 6,000 troops aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush and several

warships escorting it, said current and former officials, who, like some others, spoke on

the condition of anonymity to discuss military movements. Now, according to this report, they

get there just as the two-week truce expires on the 22nd. That is in addition to the post reports to about 4,200 members

of a combined Marine and Naval group due in the area near the end of the month, and those

forces are on top of the early approximately 50,000 troops already in the theater of operations.

Something presumably for Iran to contemplate as the ceasefire ticks away or possibly contend with and face if fighting resumes.

Today, the White House, Press Secretary Carolyn Levitt, rejected for now the notion that a ceasefire would be extended.

I saw some reporting, again, bad reporting this morning that we had formally requested an extension of the ceasefire.

That is not true at this moment.

We remain very much engaged in these negotiations in these talks.

At this moment, as for those talks, she sounded an optimistic note.

These conversations are productive and ongoing, and that's where we are right now.

In related news, Pakistan's top military commander arrived today in Tehran.

According to Iranian state media, he's bearing a secret message for the Iranians from President

Trump.

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