Pentagon to Send More U.S. Troops to Middle East as Tensions Rise
Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, declined to say exactly how many troops were deploying, citing operational security.
Reporting from Washington
The Pentagon is sending additional U.S. troops to the Middle East as tensions continue to rise after Israeli airstrikes against Hezbollah killed at least 350 people in Lebanon, Defense Department officials said on Monday.
The troops will number in the dozens, one official said, and will head to the region to help protect the thousands of Americans who are stationed there.
Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, declined to say exactly how many troops were deploying, citing operational security.
“In light of increased tension in the Middle East and out of an abundance of caution, we are sending a small number of additional U.S. military personnel forward to augment our forces that are already in the region,” he said.
The deployment comes a day after Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III called his Israeli counterpart, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Mr. Austin “stressed the importance of finding a path to a diplomatic solution that will allow residents on both sides of the border to return to their homes as quickly and safely as possible, as well as reaching a Gaza cease-fire deal that will bring all the hostages home,” the Pentagon said in a statement on Monday.
“The secretary made clear that the United States remains postured to protect U.S. forces and personnel and determined to deter any regional actors from exploiting the situation or expanding the conflict,” the statement said.
About 40,000 American troops are stationed in the region on bases in Iraq, in Syria and in the Persian Gulf countries. The U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln is in the Gulf of Oman, and a second aircraft carrier, the U.S.S. Harry S. Truman, left Norfolk, Va., on Monday for the Mediterranean as part of a regularly scheduled deployment.
Tensions have significantly escalated this week between Israel and Hezbollah, the Lebanese militia supported by Iran. Back-and-forth attacks have brought the two sides to the brink of their first full-scale war since 2006, when they fought a 34-day conflict that involved an Israeli ground invasion and the deaths of over 1,000 Lebanese and 150 Israelis.
In recent days, Israel has carried out a series of attacks on Hezbollah targets, raising concern in the Biden administration that retaliatory strikes by the group or its patron, Iran, could endanger U.S. troops in the region.
Helene Cooper is a Pentagon correspondent. She was previously an editor, diplomatic correspondent and White House correspondent. More about Helene Cooper
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