The US has ordered a guided-missile submarine to the Middle East and an aircraft carrier to speed up its arrival in the region in advance of an expected retaliatory strike on Israel by Iran and Hezbollah, Pentagon officials said.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin made the order Sunday to deploy the USS Georgia guided-missile submarine to the Middle East and also called on the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier already en route to the area to expedite its travel.
Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, said Austin also met with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Monday to reiterate America’s commitment to protect Israel from its escalating conflict with Iran and its terror proxies.
“[America will] take every possible step to defend Israel,” Ryder said, noting the growing presence of US military forces across the Middle East amid the threat of all-out war.
It’s unclear how Austin’s order would speed up the USS Lincoln’s movement, as the aircraft carrier continues to travel to the Middle East from the Asia Pacific.
Austin said last week that the Lincoln, which carries F-35 fighter jets on board, would arrive in the Central Command region by the end of the month.
Ryder did not say how quickly the USS Georgia would arrive in the region.
The need to beef up American defenses in the Middle East comes as Iran and Hezbollah have both vowed revenge against the Jewish state for the recent high-profile deaths of two terrorist leaders.
Iran had been humiliated after Hamas’ chief Ismail Haniyeh was killed in an alleged Israeli strike while in Tehran on July 30, and Hezbollah suffered a blow when an Israeli attack killed senior commander Fuad Shukr the day before.
Both Iran and Hezbollah are expected to attack in the coming days, with the Lebanon-based terror group continuing its daily barrage on northern Israel as it prepares for a large assault independent of its backers.
On Sunday night, Hezbollah fired about 30 rockets across the border, with many of the missiles intercepted by Israel’s air defense system.
There were no injuries reported from the attack, which came after an Israeli strike reportedly injured a dozen people in southern Lebanon.
As tensions with Hezbollah heat up and continue to stoke fears of a two-front war, Israeli intelligence officials claim Iran plans to launch an offensive against Israel soon, possibly before Thursday, sources told Axios reporter Barak Ravid.
That would be before scheduled hostage negotiations between Hamas and Israel on Aug. 15, which the terror group announced Sunday it was backing out of.
With Post wires
