&w=1024&resize=1024,0&ssl=1 "US to send troops to Israel to help defend against Iran Foreign Defense Security News")
The United States will send a high-altitude area defense terminal battery to Israel along with the troops needed to operate it, the Pentagon said on Sunday, even as Iran warned Washington to keep American military forces out of Israel.
Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, said in a statement that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin approved the deployment of the THAAD battery at the direction of President Joe Biden. He said the move would help strengthen Israel's air defenses following Iran's ballistic missile attacks on Israel in April and October.
Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp
Despite extensive diplomatic efforts to avoid an all-out war, the provision of sophisticated missile defense systems risks worsening the conflict in the Middle East. Iran's warning came in a post on social platform X linked to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who cited previous reports that the US was considering a deployment.
Israeli forces and Hezbollah fighters have clashed in Lebanon since October 8, 2023, when the Lebanese militant group began firing rockets across the border in support of its ally Hamas in Gaza. Israel launched a ground invasion of Lebanon late last month.
Israel is believed to be preparing a military response to Iran's attack on October 1, when it fired around 180 missiles at Israel.
During a brief conversation with reporters before leaving Florida on Sunday, Biden said he agreed to send THAAD batteries to defend Israel. Biden spoke at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa after making a quick visit to see the damage caused by Hurricane Milton and meeting with first responders, residents and local leaders.
In his statement, Ryder said the deployment “underscores the United States’ commitment to the defense of Israel and to protecting Americans in Israel from any further ballistic missile attacks by Iran.”
It was not immediately clear where the THAAD batteries were coming from or when they would arrive. Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani, an Israeli army spokesman, declined to provide a timetable for their arrival but thanked the United States for its support.
On October 7, 2023, the US sent a battery to the Middle East along with additional Patriot battalions to reinforce the protection of US forces in the region late last year, following an attack on Israel by Hamas militants. Ryder also said the US sent a THAAD battery to Israel in 2019 for training.
A limited number of troops in Israel is not unusual for the United States, which the United States considers an important regional ally. There are usually a small number of forces continuously deployed side by side for regular rotation for training and exercises.
According to an April report from the Congressional Research Service, the Army has seven THAAD batteries. Each typically has six truck-mounted launchers, 48 interceptors, radio and radar equipment and requires 95 soldiers to operate.
THAAD is considered a complementary system to Patriot, but can protect a wider area. It can hit targets at a distance of 150 to 200 kilometers (93 to 124 miles).
(Only the title and image for this report may have been reworked by the Business Standards team; the rest of the content is automatically generated from a distributed feed.)
