US deploys forces "to defend Israel"
The Pentagon will send additional military resources amid the escalation between West Jerusalem and Tehran | Washington has ordered more destroyers, cruisers, and an additional fighter squadron to the Middle East to defend Israel amid rising tensions with Iran, the US Defense Department said on Friday. ● In addition, the US has ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group to relieve the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier currently deployed in the Middle East. ● The announcement comes amid rising tensions after this week’s killing of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. Both Hamas and Iran have blamed Israel for the attack and have promised revenge. Iran also stated that the US bears partial responsibility for the attack as a “supporter and accomplice” of Israel. ● While West Jerusalem has neither confirmed nor denied any involvement, it has repeatedly threatened to take out the Hamas leadership over the group’s October 7 attack on Israel, which took the lives of around 1,200 Israelis and led to more than 250 being taken hostage.
■ Israel, US preparing for Iranian retaliation: Report (Anadolu)
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■ US Sends Warships to Middle East as Embassy in Israel Issues Security Alert (Sputnik News)