Reuters quoted the Pentagon statement as saying that Austin also ordered the acceleration of the dispatch of the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln and its accompanying group to the region.
In a phone call with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Galant, Lloyd Austin affirmed the United States’ commitment to taking every possible step to defend Israel.
The US Defense Secretary pointed to strengthening the US military force posture and capabilities throughout the Middle East in light of rising regional tensions.
The US Department of Defense announced earlier in August that the military would deploy additional naval ships and destroyers to the Middle East, in light of the escalation in the region.
This comes as the United States seeks to bolster defenses in the wake of threats from Iran, Hezbollah and Hamas, which are allied with it.
The United States has deployed 12 warships to the Middle East, where tensions are rising following the assassination of Hamas political bureau leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut.
A US Department of Defense official told the Washington Post that US destroyers are stationed in the Gulf and eastern Mediterranean, including the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, amphibious assault teams, and more than 4,000 Marines and sailors.
According to the report published by the newspaper, the United States has redirected a number of warships stationed in the Red Sea, which are carrying out operations against the Houthis in Yemen, to the Gulf and the Mediterranean, in light of the escalating tensions in the region.
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