US sends more troops amid Israeli strikes on Lebanon
The US is deploying a “small number” of additional troops to the Middle East after Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Lebanon, The Pentagon has announced.
Spokesperson Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder announced the move on Monday but declined to provide further details on the number or mission of the American troops.
”In light of increased tension in the Middle East and out of an abundance of caution, we are sending a small number of additional US military personnel forward to augment our forces already in the region,” Ryder said. “But for operational security reasons, I’m not going to comment on or provide specifics.”
The US currently has around 40,000 troops stationed in the Middle East, along with several Navy warships and aircraft carriers, including the USS Harry S. Truman and the USS Abraham Lincoln. The assets are positioned in multiple locations to respond to potential attacks against Israel or American interests.
Months of tension between Israel and Hezbollah escalated last week when thousands of pagers and other communications devices used by Hezbollah simultaneously exploded, killing at least 37 people and injuring an estimated 3,000, including children. On Friday, Israeli jets bombarded Beirut, killing Ibrahim Aqil, a senior Hezbollah commander. Hezbollah retaliated by launching dozens of rockets at Israel and announcing an “open-ended battle of reckoning” on Sunday.
On Monday, Israel launched a large-scale military operation against Hezbollah, dubbed “Northern Arrows,” in which the IDF claims to have struck “approximately 1,600 Hezbollah terrorist targets” in multiple strikes on southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley.
”We are striking targets and preparing for the next phases, which I will elaborate on shortly,” Israel’s Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi announced on Monday. “Essentially, we are targeting combat infrastructure that Hezbollah has been building for the past 20 years. This is very significant.”
By the end of the day, Israeli strikes had killed at least 492 people including 35 children and 58 women, and wounded 1,645, according to the latest tally from Lebanon's health ministry.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held multiple calls with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, over the weekend, while the US Embassy in Lebanon urged American citizens to leave the country.
In the meantime, the US is seeking a political “off-ramp” for both Israel and Hezbollah to reduce tensions and prevent an all-out war, an unnamed senior State Department official told multiple media outlets on Monday. The US will reportedly discuss “concrete ideas” for restoring peace with allies and partners at the UN General Assembly's annual meeting.
