() – Over the past year, following the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas, the United States has steadily strengthened its military posture in the Middle East, and tensions have risen further in the days following Israel’s launch of its operation against Hezbollah.
Twice this year, U.S. forces in the region have helped Israel intercept missile attacks from Iran. On October 1, two Navy destroyers located in the eastern Mediterranean fired about 12 interceptors at Iranian missiles, of which authorities say about 200 were fired toward Israel.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said in a statement that he was “proud of the skill and bravery” of the US forces who participated in interdicting Iran’s attack.
“We will never hesitate to protect our forces and interests in the Middle East and to support the defense of Israel and our partners in the region,” he said.
In August, there were a total of approximately 40,000 American troops in the Middle East. The presence of this US firepower in the region is intended to send a clear message of deterrence and defend against attacks on Israel or US forces if necessary. There have been frequent low-scale attacks on US forces in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed groups over the past year, although they have mostly slowed in recent months.
Still, the United States intends to make it abundantly clear that broader attacks would provoke a significant response.
austin announced in early August which was sending the Strike Group led by the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln to the region. It arrived at the end of that month.
In addition to the firepower that the Lincoln Strike Group brings, the Navy has other destroyers and capabilities in the region.
The MEU is one of the United States’ primary crisis response forces. One of its essential mission tasks is its ability to conduct a non-combatant evacuation operation of U.S. citizens. The 24th MEU conducted such an operation years ago in 2006removing thousands of Americans from Lebanon during the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. /R
As of early October, the ARG’s Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), as well as the USS Bulkeley, Cole, and Arleigh Burke were operating in the eastern Mediterranean. The USS Murphy, the Indianapolis, and the Stockdale were operating in the Red Sea.
In addition to the numerous Air Force capabilities already in the region — including fighters, transport planes and tankers — the Pentagon said Sunday that more air support capabilities were headed to the Middle East.
Meanwhile, the Army has thousands of conventional ground forces in the Middle East, as well as various air defense and artillery capabilities, including Patriot missile systems, anti-drone systems, and high-mobility artillery rocket systems (HIMARS).
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