The United States will deploy additional fighter aircraft and warships – cruisers and destroyers – to the Middle East (and the eastern Mediterranean) as tensions in the region escalate at the most dangerous moment since the start of the war in Gaza, following the assassinations of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders in Tehran and Beirut, and fears of retaliation by Iran and its allied militias.
Washington, like other allies in the region, fears that Tehran could launch an attack against Israel similar to, or even larger than, the one it carried out in April with hundreds of drones and missiles, in revenge for the death of seven of its military commanders in a bombing of a consular building in Damascus. On that occasion, US and other allied aircraft were deployed to intercept most of the projectiles aimed at Israeli territory.
The Pentagon also fears that militias allied to Tehran, such as the Houthis in Yemen or Kataib Hezbollah in Iraq, could try to attack US troops stationed in the area, as has been happening at times of high tension in the region since the war in Gaza began almost ten months ago.
Iran has vowed to respond to the assassination of Hamas political chief Ismail Haniya in Tehran early Wednesday, which it blames on Israel. That death, coupled with that of Fuad Shukur, number two of the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah, in Beirut on Tuesday, has triggered fears that the current conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza could spread to other areas in the Middle East. A scenario that Washington wants to avoid at all costs, immersed in the last leg of its thorny electoral campaign for the presidential elections in November.
In a statement, the Pentagon said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had approved the deployment of additional ships and aircraft to the area. Austin “has ordered an adjustment to the U.S. military posture designed to enhance the protection of U.S. forces, increase support for the defense of Israel, and ensure that the United States is prepared to respond in a variety of circumstances,” the statement said. Washington had also reinforced its military presence in the area in the days leading up to the Iranian attack on April 13.
Austin spoke to his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, hours before the Pentagon’s announcement. The defense secretary stressed to his interlocutor that “further escalation is not inevitable, and that all countries in the region would benefit from a reduction in tensions, through steps such as the implementation of a ceasefire in Gaza and an agreement for the release of hostages.”
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At the same time, he also insisted that neither Iran nor the militias it protects in the region “should have any doubt” about the United States’ determination to support Israel against possible aggression.
The day before, US President Joe Biden also spoke by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. During that call, the White House resident discussed possible additional deployments to protect Israel.
The warships the U.S. plans to send are equipped with missile defense systems. Washington will also send a squadron of fighter jets to the Middle East and is considering steps to deploy more missile defense systems on land, the Pentagon said. The Defense Department has not specified when these assets would be deployed.
Austin has also ordered the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln and its group of escort vessels replace the one already present in the area under the responsibility of the Central Command, the Theodore Rooseveltand was scheduled to return to its base. The order from the Secretary of Defense indicates that the Pentagon has decided to keep at least one aircraft carrier in the area at all times while tensions remain at their current high levels.
The United States also has ships in the area from the WASP amphibious group operating in the eastern Mediterranean, the Pentagon notes. This formation is manned by 4,500 sailors and marines, and is equipped with around thirty aircraft and helicopters.
The Defense Department insists that Washington “remains focused on reducing tensions in the region and promoting a ceasefire as part of an agreement so that the hostages (Israelis held in Gaza) can return home and the war in the Strip ends.”
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