WASHINGTON - US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin has ordered the deployment of a guided missile submarine to the Middle East, said the Pentagon on Aug 11, as the region braces itself for possible attacks by Iran and its allies after the killing of senior members of Hamas and Hezbollah.
While the USS Georgia, a nuclear-powered submarine, was already in the Mediterranean Sea in July, according to a US military post on social media, it was a rare move to publicly announce the deployment of a submarine.
In a statement after Mr Austin spoke with his Israeli counterpart, the Pentagon said Mr Austin had ordered the Abraham Lincoln strike group to accelerate its deployment to the region.
“Secretary Austin reiterated the United States’ commitment to take every possible step to defend Israel and noted the strengthening of US military force posture and capabilities throughout the Middle East in the light of escalating regional tensions,” the statement added.
The US military had said it will deploy additional fighter jets and navy warships to the Middle East as Washington seeks to bolster Israeli defences.
Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Iran-backed Hamas, was assassinated in the Iranian capital Tehran on July 31, an attack that drew threats of revenge by Iran against Israel, which is fighting the Palestinian Islamist group in Gaza. Iran blamed Israel for the killing. Israel has not claimed responsibility.
The assassination of Mr Fuad Shukr, the senior military commander of the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah, by Israel in a strike on Beirut, has fuelled concern that the conflict in Gaza was turning into a wider Middle East war.
Iran has said that the US bears responsibility in the assassination of Haniyeh because of its support for Israel.
Reuters reported that several US and coalition personnel were wounded in a drone attack on Aug 9 in Syria – the second major attack in recent days against US forces amid soaring tensions in the Middle East. REUTERS