The commander of U.S. Central Command told reporters at the Pentagon Friday that the U.S. would retain two aircraft carriers in the Middle East and is in the process of moving Patriot missile defense batteries into Iraq as Iran tensions mount.
The move by CENTCOM comes following a deadly rocket attack on an Iraqi base that killed two U.S. service members and a U.K. armed forces member. The U.S. responded to that attack Thursday launching airstrikes against five weapons storage depots belonging to an Iran-backed militia known as Kataib Hezbollah.
Marine Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr., the comander of CENTCOM, told reporters Friday that the carrier operations in the Middle East would be the “first period of extended dual carrier operations” in the region since 2012.
Currently the Nimitz-class Dwight D. Eisenhower and Harry S. Truman are operating in the the CENTCOM area of operations.
“I would caution Iran and its proxies from attempting a response that would endanger U.S. and coalition forces,” McKenzie said. “We have the flexibility, the capability, and the will to respond to any threat.”
US keeping two carriers in Mideast, moving Patriot missile batteries into Iraq as Iran tensions mount
The move by CENTCOM comes following a deadly rocket attack on an Iraqi base that killed two U.S. service members and a U.K. armed forces member. The U.S. responded to that attack Thursday launching airstrikes against five weapons storage depots belonging to an Iran-backed militia known as Kataib Hezbollah.
Marine Gen. Kenneth McKenzie Jr., the comander of CENTCOM, told reporters Friday that the carrier operations in the Middle East would be the “first period of extended dual carrier operations” in the region since 2012.
Currently the Nimitz-class Dwight D. Eisenhower and Harry S. Truman are operating in the the CENTCOM area of operations.
“I would caution Iran and its proxies from attempting a response that would endanger U.S. and coalition forces,” McKenzie said. “We have the flexibility, the capability, and the will to respond to any threat.”
US keeping two carriers in Mideast, moving Patriot missile batteries into Iraq as Iran tensions mount
