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US says it is sending more troops to the region
The Pentagon says the US is sending additional troops to the Middle East in response to developments in Lebanon that have raised the risk of a greater regional war. Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder did not specify how many additional forces are being deployed or what they would be tasked to do.
The US currently has about 40,000 soldiers in the region.
“In light of increased tension in the Middle East and out of an abundance of caution, we are sending a small number of additional US military personnel forward to augment our forces that are already in the region. But for operational security reasons, I’m not going to comment on or provide specifics,” Ryder said.
Biden says US working to ‘de-escalate’ situation in Lebanon
US President Joe Biden says he has been “briefed on the latest developments in Israel and Lebanon”.
“My team is in constant contact with their counterparts, and we’re working to de-escalate in a way that allows people to return home safely,” said Biden, who met United Arab Emirates President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the White House.
Earlier, the Pentagon said the US would be sending additional troops to the Middle East in response to developments in Lebanon. The US is Israel’s top diplomatic and military backer. It is also Israel’s main weapons provider, giving it at least $3.8bn in military aid annually.
Rights advocates and analysts have repeatedly accused the US of acting as both an “arsonist and firefighter” by refusing to leverage military assistance to Israel to end the war on Gaza, which has killed more than 41,000 people and risks igniting a wider conflict in the region.
Israeli army preparing for next stage of operation against Lebanon
The Israeli military is preparing for the next stage of its operation in Lebanon after launching a massive wave of air strikes on Lebanon today, according to its chief of staff.
“Essentially, we are targeting combat infrastructure that Hezbollah has been building for the past 20 years. This is very significant. We are striking targets and preparing for the next phases,” he said in a statement, giving no details but adding that he would “elaborate shortly”.
Israel’s attacks on Lebanon have killed 274 people today, including 21 children, and wounded at least 1,024.
Israeli army says it strikes more than 1,000 targets in Lebanon
Israel’s army says it has struck 1,100 targets with more than 1,400 types of ammunition across southern and eastern Lebanon in the past 24 hours. Israeli warplanes and drones carried out about 650 attacks, it said, targeting buildings, vehicles and infrastructure.
Israeli forces continue to carry out raids on “hundreds of targets in Lebanon”, it added.
These attacks have so far killed more than 270 people today, among them children. More than 1,000 others have been wounded.
Death in Lebanon rises: Health Ministry
The death toll in Israeli attacks across Lebanon today has risen to 356, the Lebanese Health Ministry announced, adding that 24 children and 42 women are among the dead.
At least 1,246 people were wounded in the attacks.
