The US will send an aircraft carrier strike group, a fighter squadron and additional warships to the Middle East as the region is preparing for retaliation of Iran for the killing of a senior Hamas leader in Tehran earlier this week.
This is announced in the statement of the US Department of Defense, information about which is shared by the CNN portal.
"We heard the Supreme Leader (of Iran - ed.) say loud and clear that he intends to take revenge for the assassination of the Hamas leader in Tehran, and that they want to launch another attack on Israel. We can't just assume that we could potentially be victims of such an attack as well, so we have to make sure we have the appropriate resources and capabilities in the region," said John Kirby, US National Security Council's strategic communications coordinator.
Meanwhile on Friday, Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, ordered the Abraham Lincoln destroyer strike group to replace the Theodore Roosevelt destroyer strike group, which is currently operating in the Gulf of Oman, according to a statement from Pentagon deputy press secretary Sabrina Singh.
In addition, destroyers and cruisers capable of countering ballistic missiles will also be sent to the Middle East and the Mediterranean Sea. The statement did not say which warships were sent, but two US destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean Sea were involved in intercepting a barrage of strikes launched by Iran against Israel in April.
Austin also ordered the deployment of a fighter squadron to the region, Singh said.
The US already has the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp in the region, operating as part of the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, capable of evacuating US citizens in Lebanon if ordered to do so.
"The global defense of the United States is dynamic, and the Department of Defense maintains the ability to deploy at short notice to respond to emerging threats to national security," Singh said.
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