US Establishes First Permanent Military Base in Israel

Israeli General Says Move Proves US 'Strategic Commitment'

For the first time ever, the United States has established a permanent military base in the nation of Israel, a small air defense base set up inside Israel’s Mashabim Air Base, in the nation’s Negev Desert.

Israeli Brig. Gen. Tzvika Haimovitch, the head of Israel’s Aerial Defense Command, said it was an historic move, and proves America’s “strategic commitment” to support Israel. He added it would allow for an improvement in interception operations.

The US, of course, has already made deep commitments to supporting Israel militarily into the future, irrespective of the costs. The establishment of the base, however, makes America’s commitment even more overt, and likely more long-lasting.

Though Brig. Gen. Haimovich declined to say if this meant US forces would participate in Israeli combat operations in the future, he said it was “much more significant than that” simply to have a presence of US soldiers in the country. Exact sizes aren’t clear, but estimates are that several dozen US soldiers will remain at the base.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.