The US Navy has two carrier strike groups deployed to the Middle East for the first time in years, bringing significant combat power to the region as it remains on high alert.
The USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike groups are both operating in the US Central Command area of responsibility, though the latter has been there only a few days. The former has been in the region for a few weeks now.
It was initially unclear, given conflicting previous statements on the matter, if the US intention was to dual-wield them in the Middle East or to replace the Roosevelt with the Lincoln that just arrived. The Pentagon provided some clarity on Sunday in an announcement that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin had ordered both strike groups to stay in the region for an undisclosed amount of time amid regional tensions.
The move, which came just hours after Israel and Hezbollah exchanged some of the heaviest fire of their monthslong cross-border conflict, is meant to be a signal of support to Israel and a show of force to Iran and its regional proxies. The last time two US Navy carrier strike groups operated together in the Middle East was in March 2020.
Both strike groups consist of an aircraft carrier, four destroyers, and a carrier air wing that includes fighter jets, electronic warfare aircraft, surveillance planes, and helicopters.
The strike groups are highly flexible naval assets that provide significant firepower for offensive and defensive operations. The Lincoln is equipped with F-35 stealth fighter jets, putting it among the Navy’s more advanced carriers even as an older Nimitz-class aircraft carrier.
A US defense official told Business Insider on Monday that both carrier strike groups are currently operating in the Gulf of Oman. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive force posture changes.
The Lincoln and its accompanying warships were first directed to the Middle East at the start of August to replace the Roosevelt strike group, which had been operating in the region for several weeks.
Its deployment was part of a broader reshuffling of US military assets in the wake of the back-to-back assassinations of top Hezbollah and Hamas leaders, both of which were pinned on Israel by Iran and its proxies, which have vowed to pursue revenge over the killings. The tense rhetoric has raised fears that any retaliation could plunge the Middle East into even more violence.
As the Lincoln was on its way, Austin ordered the carrier to accelerate its transit to the region to add to Roosevelt’s existing capabilities. The Lincoln finally arrived there last week, but it wasn’t clear how long the two strike groups would actually overlap.
Early on Sunday, Israel said that it carried out preemptive strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon after detecting plans for a large-scale attack on its territory by the Iranian proxy group.
In response, Hezbollah then launched hundreds of rockets and drones at Israel in what it said was the long-anticipated revenge over the killing of its top commander in Beirut last month.
The exchange of fire over this past weekend marked some of the most intense between Israel and Hezbollah in nearly a year of fighting. While it quickly fizzled out, the region remains on edge as Iran promises its own response to the killing of a Hamas political leader on its soil last month.
In a conversation on Sunday with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, Austin “reiterated Israel’s right to defend itself and the United States’ ironclad resolve to support Israel’s defense against threats from Iran and its regional partners and proxies,” according to a Pentagon readout of the call.
“As part of that support, the Secretary has ordered the presence of two Carrier Strike Groups to remain in the region,” the readout continued.
Beyond the two strike groups, the Navy also has significant firepower in the Eastern Mediterranean, including multiple destroyers and an amphibious ready group, as the US continues to build up its land- and sea-based forces across the broader region.
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