US rushes submarine to Middle East as Israel braces for retaliation from Iran
The move comes in response to fears of a wider regional conflict, after the recent assassination of senior Hezbollah and Hamas leaders
As tensions are mounting in the Middle East, the United States has sent a guided missile submarine to the region.
US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin also confirmed that an aircraft carrier which was already heading to the area would sail there more quickly. The move comes in response to fears of a wider regional conflict, after the recent assassination of senior Hezbollah and Hamas leaders, said a BBC report.
It also hints at the US’ determination to help defend Israel from any attack by Iran - with Austin saying they would “take every possible step” to defend its ally.
Following the assassination of top Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31, all eyes are on Iran as to how and when it will respond to the move. The Iranians didn’t mince words and blamed Israel for his assassination on their soil while vowing to punish it.
In a statement released on Sunday, the Pentagon said Austin had sent the USS Georgia guided missile submarine to the region. Moreover, the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group, which is carrying F-35C fighter jets, had been asked to accelerate its journey there. The ship was already on its way to replace another US ship in the region.
Meanwhile, there is also a possibility of Hezbollah attack on Israel. Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed militia and political movement in Lebanon, has vowed to respond to the killing of senior commander Fuad Shukr, which happened just hours before Haniyeh’s assassination, in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
In another significant development, several passenger airlines have cancelled flights to airports in the region due to the perceived threat.
German airline Lufthansa said on Monday it was suspending flights to Tel Aviv in Israel, Lebanon's capital city Beirut, the Jordanian capital Amman, Erbil in Iraq, and the Iranian capital, Tehran, until August 21 “based on its current security analysis”. Swiss Air has also cancelled its flights scheduled to travel to Tel Aviv and Beirut over the same period.
Meanwhile, Air France extended its suspension of flights to Beirut - which began on July 29 - through to Wednesday, according to news agency AFP. Other airlines, including AirBaltic and EasyJet, have previously said they were suspending flights to the region.
