The Pentagon announced on Monday that the United States is dispatching a limited number of ground personnel to the Middle East in anticipation of a potential larger conflict between Israel and Hezbollah.
Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, the press secretary for the Defense Department, informed reporters that the new detachment was being dispatched due to the heightened tension in the Middle East and a desire for extreme caution.
The United States has already deployed a variety of forces in the Middle East, such as the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group and the ballistic missile submarine USS Georgia, in addition to an additional squadron of F-22 fighter airplanes.
The USS Wasp, an amphibious assault ship, is one of six U.S. warships stationed in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and Israel are on the brink of a full-scale conflict as a result of a deadly exchange of fire across the border in the past week.
According to Lebanese health authorities, Israeli forces targeted approximately 300 Hezbollah sites on Monday, resulting in the deaths of at least 245 individuals and the injury of approximately 1,000 others.
This represents one of the most violent days in the country’s recent history.
Israeli officials had issued a warning to Lebanese civilians residing in close proximity to Hezbollah sites to evacuate prior to the assaults.
On Monday, Hezbollah launched approximately 130 missiles at the Israeli city of Haifa, asserting that they had struck or targeted Israeli military warehouses and defense contractor sites.
The escalation follows the recent intense Israeli attacks in Lebanon, which resulted in the deaths of senior Hezbollah commanders.
In Lebanon last week, Israel is also accused of detonating pager and handheld radio devices, which resulted in the deaths of at least 37 individuals and the injury of thousands.
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