Posted on 10/22/23
| News Source: JPost
The United States increased its military forces in the Middle East as it braced for increased Iranian proxy attacks against American targets as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu worked to avoid a two-front war with Tehran-backed terror groups.
“We are concerned at the possibility of Iranian proxies escalating their attacks against our own personnel, our own people,” Blinken told CBS on Sunday. “We’re taking every measure to make sure that we can defend them and, if necessary, respond decisively.
US Senator Lindsey Graham warned Iran “that if this war grows, it's coming to your backyard,” during a Tel Aviv press conference.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said late Saturday that Washington would send more military assets to the Middle East both in support of Israel and to strengthen the U.S. defense posture in the region.
“I redirected the movement of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group to the Central Command area of responsibility,” Austin said.
“This carrier strike group is in addition to the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group, which is currently operating in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea,” he added.
A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system and extra Patriot air defense missile system battalions will be sent to the region and more troops put on standby, he said. There are already some 2,000 US troops ready to be deployed.