The US might deploy a second aircraft carrier to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea to support Israel’s attack on Gaza, two Pentagon officials told POLITICO on Tuesday.
In the wake of the Hamas attack on southern Israel, the US announced that it was deploying the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford and its strike group, which arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean on Tuesday.
The Pentagon officials said that the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and its strike group, which includes several other warships, were already scheduled to leave Norfolk, Virginia, this week and that it might be ordered to also deploy near Israel. The Pentagon said that the Eisenhower could leave on Friday and arrive in the Eastern Mediterranean at the end of October.
A double aircraft carrier deployment would be a massive show of force in the region and could risk escalating the situation. Some Shia factions in Iraq have threatened attacks on US bases in the country if the US “intervenes” to support Israel against Hamas. Yemen’s Houthis have also said they could take action against the US if it intervenes in the conflict.
The US has sent more weapons to Israel and offered to provide intelligence and planning support for Israel’s expected ground invasion of Gaza, but so far, there’s no indication of the US directly entering the war with troops or direct airstrikes. If the US took the step of direct intervention, it would mark a dramatic escalation of US support for Israel.
This is bordering on ridiculous how many carrier battle groups does it take to quell a prison rebellion?
Considering how the American military got beat by a bunch of guys running around in sandals in Afghanistan, it’s probably a wise precaution on the regime’s part
“…in a 20 year war.”
Everybody gets beat by those guys.
US can only threaten to attack or strike weak small countries with little or no military…! US claims to be not directly involved in this conflict, same as Ukraine… But you don’t hear US sending carrier strike groups to Baltic or Black sea…!
There is a treaty about what can pass through the Bosphorus.
You missed the point, as usual.
Big fat targets for Hezbollah missiles.
They serve no function against Gaza. They are a threat to Iran.
Nevertheless Bibi is salivating about the prospects of entangling the US in any of the shooting.
They serve as a deterrent to hezboallah
I’m not really sure why Biden thinks this conflict is any of his business. He ought to be required to elucidate how a dispute between Israel and Hamas affects the security of the US, and to state precisely what circumstances would warrant putting US soldiers in harms way. Absent π¨π₯ππππππ authorization from Congress, he has an obligation to explain to Congress NOW, if he is contemplating actions that could be interpreted as waging war… with Iran or anybody else.
Not enough…! Send the third one…!
How many battleships does the US Navy have in mothball or as floating museums ? Get the USS Missouri out of Cher’s back yard & have it ready to sail & shell Gaza as needed !
Battleships are long obsolete. The USS Missouri fired the first shots of the 1991 Gulf War (Tomahawk missile launches, which I heard from ashore a few minutes before we got the word that it had started), but it wasn’t doing anything other ships can’t do now and using the Missouri was probably more a PR stunt than anything.
The US rushing TWO carrier groups to “help” is a PR stunt. This is asking Mike Tyson & George Foreman to help Jake Paul beat Christopher Reeve.
Sick.
A third one isn’t enough. Send all of them!
Unbelievable. El Presidente is drunk on power, completely out of control. End of the Empire…
Have no fear. Bidenβs team are masters of negotiating peace. The aircraft carriers will surely get everyone to the table!