عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

US Places 2,000 Soldiers on Deployment Alert to Increase DoD's Ability to Respond in MidEast

Fighters on board the aircraft carrier sent by the US Department of Defense to the waters of the eastern Mediterranean (US Navy)
Fighters on board the aircraft carrier sent by the US Department of Defense to the waters of the eastern Mediterranean (US Navy)
TT
TT

US Places 2,000 Soldiers on Deployment Alert to Increase DoD's Ability to Respond in MidEast

Fighters on board the aircraft carrier sent by the US Department of Defense to the waters of the eastern Mediterranean (US Navy)
Fighters on board the aircraft carrier sent by the US Department of Defense to the waters of the eastern Mediterranean (US Navy)

The US Department of Defense (Pentagon) announced Tuesday that approximately 2,000 personnel across various units are in a heightened state of readiness to increase the department's deterrence posture and ability to respond in the Middle East.

The new announcement aims to meet Israel's needs after the Hamas attack on the Hebrew state.

The Pentagon said in a statement that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has placed approximately 2,000 personnel across various units on a heightened state of readiness to bolster deterrence posture in the Middle East.

However, no decisions have been made to deploy any of those forces.

US media reported that the troops being readied for deployment would cover support roles, such as medical assistance and handling explosives.

The Washington Post quoted defense officials saying the USS Bataan, an amphibious assault ship in the United States Navy made up of about 4,000 Marines and sailors, will join the task force in the Mediterranean Sea and head near the Israeli shore, defense officials said.

The Bataan and the USS Carter Hall, another of the ships transporting the task force, were in the Gulf of Oman on Monday, having left Kuwait after the unprecedented attack by Hamas.

Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden will travel to Israel on Wednesday to show Washington's support for its ally.

Biden will be on a mission to prevent the conflict between Israel and Hamas from spreading to the Middle East.

Also, the top US general overseeing US forces in the Middle East, Michael Kurilla, made an unannounced trip to Israel on Tuesday, saying he hoped to ensure its military has what it needs as it fights a deepening war against the Palestinian group.

Kurilla’s trip is the latest by a senior US official to Israel ahead of an expected ground assault by Israel's military in Gaza and before Biden's visit.

According to Reuters, the US military is increasing its firepower in the region, aiming to prevent Iran and other Iran-backed groups from getting involved in the conflict as international fears of a broader regional war grow.

The Pentagon also rushes weapons to Israel, including air defenses and munitions.

"I'm here to ensure Israel has what it needs to defend itself, particularly focused on avoiding other parties expanding the conflict," Kurilla told Reuters, which is traveling with him, in brief remarks before landing.

A US official told Reuters that Kurilla was scheduled to hold high-level meetings with Israel's military leadership, ensuring a clear understanding of the close US ally's defense requirements.

Kurilla was also expected to outline US military support to avoid expanding the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Erdogan Says Türkiye Expects Allies to Pull Support from Kurds in Post-Assad Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a press conference with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (not pictured), Ankara, Türkiye, 04 September 2024. (File/EPA)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a press conference with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (not pictured), Ankara, Türkiye, 04 September 2024. (File/EPA)
TT
TT

Erdogan Says Türkiye Expects Allies to Pull Support from Kurds in Post-Assad Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a press conference with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (not pictured), Ankara, Türkiye, 04 September 2024. (File/EPA)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a press conference with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (not pictured), Ankara, Türkiye, 04 September 2024. (File/EPA)

Türkiye expects foreign countries will withdraw support for Kurdish fighters in Syria following the toppling of Bashar al-Assad, President Tayyip Erdogan said, as Ankara seeks to isolate Kurds who have long fought alongside US troops.

Speaking to reporters on the flight home from a summit in Egypt on Thursday, Erdogan said there was no longer any reason for outsiders to back Kurdish YPG fighters. His comments were released by his office on Friday.

The Kurdish YPG has been the main force in a US-backed alliance in northern Syria, but Türkiye considers the group an extension of the PKK, which has long fought the Turkish state and is banned as terrorists by Ankara, Washington and the EU.

In his remarks, Erdogan compared the US-backed YPG to ISIS, and said neither group had any future in Syria.

"In the upcoming period, we do not believe that any power will continue to collaborate with terrorist organizations. The heads of terrorist organizations such as ISIS and PKK-YPG will be crushed in the shortest possible time."

According to Reuters, the United States still has 900 troops on the ground in Syria working alongside the YPG-led alliance known as the Syrian Democratic Forces. The SDF played a major role on the ground defeating ISIS militants in 2014-2017 with US air support, and still guards Islamist fighters in prison camps.

Ankara, alongside Syrian allies, has mounted several cross-border offensives against the YPG-led SDF in northern Syria, while repeatedly demanding that its NATO ally Washington halts support for the fighters.

Hostilities have escalated since Assad was toppled less than two weeks ago, with Türkiye and Syrian groups it backs seizing the city of Manbij from the SDF on Dec. 9, prompting the United States to broker a fragile ceasefire.

Erdogan told reporters that Türkiye wanted to see a new Syria in which all ethnic and religious groups can live in harmony. To achieve this, " ISIS, the PKK and its versions which threaten the survival of Syria need to be eradicated", he said.

"The PKK terrorist organization and its extensions in particular have reached the end of their lifespan," Erdogan added.

On Thursday, SDF commander Mazloum Abdi told Reuters that Kurdish fighters from outside Syria who had joined the group's ranks would leave if a truce were agreed with Türkiye, long one of Ankara's major demands.

In his remarks, Abdi acknowledged for the first time that Kurdish fighters from other countries - including PKK members - had been assisting the SDF, but said they would no longer be needed under a truce.

A Turkish Defense Ministry official said there was no talk of a ceasefire between Türkiye and the SDF, adding that Ankara would continue taking counter-terrorism measures until "the PKK/YPG lays down its arms and its foreign fighters leave Syria".