• The United States is deploying warships and B-52 bombers to the Middle East amid growing tensions.
• Israel and Iran are stuck in a cycle of retaliation.
• The United States announced earlier that it would also send a missile defense system and 100 additional troops to Israel.

The United States sends bombers and warships to the Middle East as Iran and Israel exchange threats of retaliation.

The Pentagon announced Friday that the United States will send ballistic missile defense destroyers, tanker aircraft and “several” U.S. Air Force B-52 long-range jets to the Middle East in the coming months. come.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered the deployments to defend Israel and de-escalate “through deterrence and diplomacy,” Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said in a statement.

“(Secretary Austin) continues to make clear that if Iran or its partners or proxies take advantage of this moment to target U.S. personnel or interests in the region, the United States will take all necessary measures to defend our people.” , Ryder said.

These deployments follow Israel’s first-ever overt attack on Iran on October 26, when Israel launched airstrikes inside the country. This attack was a retaliation against Iran launch a barrage of missiles against Israel earlier this month, which itself was a retaliatory attack against the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallaha key ally of Iran, in September. Tensions between the two countries have soared since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict last year.

Last week’s Israeli airstrikes were initially met with a measured response from Iran, which appeared reluctant to further escalate the conflict. But Iranian rhetoric in recent days has raised fears that the country is preparing a new attack.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a post on X on Saturday that the United States and Israel would receive a “crushing response” for their actions against Iran and its allies.

The Pentagon said in October that it had also ordered the deployment of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense missile defense system and an associated U.S. military crew to Israel. The United States announced it would send about 100 troops to operate the air defense system.

Ryder said the THAAD system deployments and new ship and aircraft deployments together represent the U.S. military’s flexibility to “deploy worldwide on short notice to meet evolving threats to national security”.