The U.S. warships and fighter jets deploying near Israel this week in support of Israel are also intended to send an explicit message to Iran, according to current and former senior U.S. officials.
That message, one of the officials said, is “stand down” — specifically when it comes to any considerations by Tehran of unleashing the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.
“This is all about deterring Iran,” the official said.
The Biden administration is sending the ships of the Navy’s USS Gerald Ford Carrier Strike Group to the eastern Mediterranean Sea, and officials are planning to keep in place for the foreseeable future some F-16 and A-10 fighter jets that were scheduled to rotate out of the region, according to a U.S. official.
The timing of deploying additional F-15s that were scheduled to arrive in about a month has now been moved up, the official said. And though the U.S. moved a squadron of F-35s out of the Middle East last week without a plan to replace them, now another squadron will move there in the coming days.
In all, as many as two dozen advanced fighter jets are expected to arrive in the region in the coming days. The official said this “represents significant air to air and air to ground capability to deter any Iranian aggression or expansion of ops,” which is shorthand for operations.
The ships and aircraft are all directly supporting Israel and deterring Iran and any other expansion, the official said.
As NBC News previously reported, the U.S. is reviewing its plans for any needed evacuation of American citizens, and the ships could be used in such an operation.
Hezbollah has fired dozens of rockets across the Israeli border, but has not fully taken up arms against Israel in the wake of Hamas’ attack. The Israeli military said Monday that it had “neutralized a number of terrorist infiltrators who crossed from Lebanon into Israel.”