The U.S. Defense Department has deployed 12 warships to the Middle East, including the Persian Gulf and the Mediterranean Sea, according to the Washington Post. This move comes amid heightened tensions in the region due to recent Israeli strikes on Beirut and Tehran.
The USS Theodore Roosevelt and six destroyers were stationed in the Persian Gulf, while a group of three landing ships and two destroyers with 4,000 marines and sailors was sent to the eastern Mediterranean. This deployment is not an official announcement of increased forces but a response to the recent escalation following the deaths of key figures from Hamas and Hezbollah.
On July 30, Israeli airstrikes targeted the Hezbollah stronghold in southern Beirut, resulting in the death of Hezbollah military chief Fouad Shokr. The following day, Hamas reported that Ismail Haniyeh, its political bureau head, was killed in an Israeli attack on his residence in Tehran. Hamas Deputy Chairman Mousa Abu Marzook warned that Haniyeh's assassination would provoke a response.
