There is much talk these days about how differences over civilian casualties in the Gaza war has seriously strained relations between the Biden administration and Israel: The New York Times carried a front-page headline on Monday, “War Tests Ties More Than Any Episode in Past 20 Years.” But strains and all, there are also plenty of positives – the main one being that President Biden seems to be maintaining his support for Israel’s vow to end the role of Hamas in Gaza.
Thus, although President Biden’s pledge of $11 billion in additional military aid to Israel has been tied up over Republican opposition to a similar pledge to Ukraine and a desire to key all aid from reductions in other expenditures, U.S. Secretary of State Blinken was just reported to have fast tracked approval for a new arms sale to Israel for the second time in a month.
While the USS Gerald Ford aircraft carrier strike force group will reportedly be redeployed from the eastern Mediterranean Sea where it was sent just after Oct. 7, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin then explaining it, “As part of our effort to deter hostile actions against Israel or any effort toward widening the war following Hamas’ attack on Israel,” senior U.S. officials insisted to ABC News that the move was long-planned in order to permit preparations for future deployments. They also stressed that the U.S. will still have enormous military capability in the region including a remaining carrier attack group originally deployed with the Gerald Ford.
And there are continuing reports of increasing U.S. air and rocket responses to attacks against American personnel and bases by Iranian proxy militias based in Yemen, Syria and Iraq. Of particular note were the U.S. downing of several Iraqi-based drones last week and the sinking of 3 Yemen-based Houthi boats in the Red Sea by U.S. helicopters.
To be sure, the Houthis are strangely drawing the U.S. into the fray by targeting U.S. and other nations’ shipping in addition to Israel’s and the U.S. has gone out of its way to accuse Iran of being “deeply involved” in the Houthi attacks on Israel. So, the bottom line is that at all events, the U.S. is materially engaged.
There is much speculation as to how the alleged ever-increasing Israeli pressure on Iran may impact events. In recent months it is claimed that Israel has mounted a pattern of air attacks against Iranian assets in the Middle East and in recent days has also killed 11 senior members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and an Iranian general who was responsible for military liaison between Syria and Iran.
It may be also be significant that on Monday, a major Iranian warship reportedly entered the Red Sea amid the growing Houthi attacks and U.S. responses. An Iranian news agency said Iran’s fleet has been active in the Red Sea for years and doesn’t mean that anything is necessarily up.
Maybe.
