WASHINGTON: The Pentagon said on Tuesday that the United States is boosting its forces in the Middle East by a “few thousand” troops, by bringing in new units while extending others that are already present in the region.
The increase in Washington’s military presence in the Middle East comes as the growing Israel-Hezbollah conflict — which saw Israel kill Hezbollah’s chief Hassan Nasrallah last week — raises fears of a wider regional war.
Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh that the military build-up will involve extending the deployment of certain units already stationed in the Middle East, as well as augmenting these forces with new units.
“A certain number of units already deployed to the Middle East region will be extended, and the forces due to rotate into theater to replace them will now instead augment those that are already there,” Singh told journalists.
The deployment will include advanced military aircraft, with plans to send additional F-16, F-15E, A-10, and F-22 fighter jets, along with associated personnel. This increased military footprint aims to bolster US support for Israel amid the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah.
On the same day, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held a meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, during which he reiterated US support for Israel against Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Austin also warned Iran that any direct attack on Israel in retaliation for its actions against Hezbollah would result in “serious consequences.”
The Israeli Defense Ministry announced that Gallant had briefed Austin on “localized and targeted” ground operations being conducted against Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military said on Tuesday that its ground troops have conducted raids in southern Lebanon. The military actions come despite widespread calls for de-escalation from international leaders.
The UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon stated that the operations did not constitute a “ground incursion.” Hezbollah has denied any Israeli troops crossing into Lebanese territory, although Israeli officials described the actions as “localized and targeted.”
Meanwhile, a senior White House official warned that “the United States has indications that Iran is preparing to imminently launch a ballistic missile attack against Israel.” Despite this, the Israeli military reported it had not detected any aerial threats from Iran at this time but remains prepared to “defend and attack.”
