The US has deployed a second Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery to Israel, multiple Israeli and Arab media reports said over the weekend.
Israeli security sources also said that the US deployed two Patriot air defense batteries to Israel. US officials previously told The Wall Street Journal that the US was sending Patriot systems to “defend US air bases and nearby allies” as part of its military buildup in the Middle East that’s aimed at Iran.
The US has also sent a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East, deployed additional B-2 bombers to its base on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, and sent other additional air assets to the region.
The Biden administration sent a THAAD system to Israel and about 100 troops to operate it in October 2024, ahead of an Israeli attack on Iran. The first Trump administration temporarily deployed a THAAD to Israel for military exercises in 2019.
The THAAD system the Biden administration deployed to Israel remains, meaning two out of the seven THAAD batteries the US operates are based in the country.
The deployment of the second THAAD system and two Patriot batteries to Israel suggests hundreds more US troops could be headed to the country as well. The deployment is a strong show of support for Israel amid its genocidal war in Gaza, ramped-up military operations in the West Bank, continued occupation of southern Lebanon, and invasion of southern Syria.
The deployment comes amid reports that the US and Israel are planning to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities even though US intelligence agencies recently reaffirmed that Tehran is not building a nuclear weapon.
