US sends amphibious assault ship USS Bataan and support vessels carrying 2,500 Marines into eastern Mediterranean and puts military bases in Iraq on full alert as Iran attacks Israel
- US Congressional sources say the amphibious assault ship Bataan is leading a US Navy task force in the Eastern Mediterranean
- The Bataan has two support ships, and together they have about 2,500 Marines aboard, with guided missile destroyers already in the area
- The decision comes after Iran launched a drone strike on Israel in response to a drone strike that left 12 Iranians dead earlier this month
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The United States has sent the warship Bataan and two support ships carrying 2,500 marines into the eastern Mediterranean after Iran launched a drone attack on Israel.
US congressional sources say the amphibious assault ship Bataan is leading a US naval task force in the eastern Mediterranean.
The Bataan has two support ships and together they have about 2,500 Marines on board. The US also has several guided missile destroyers, including the Carney, in the area.
American bases in Iraq are put on full alert and will also try to shoot down missiles and drones aimed at Israel.
In addition, the US has two destroyers and a cruiser in the Red Sea that are fully armed with anti-missile weapons and are also under orders to shoot down Israeli missiles or drones.
US congressional sources say the amphibious warship Bataan, seen here last December, is leading a US naval task force in the eastern Mediterranean.
US bases in Iraq are on full alert and will also try to shoot down missiles and drones aimed at Israel
Biden is seen here walking to the Oval Office after returning from Delaware to consult with his national security team
Iran launched the drones Saturday afternoon Eastern Standard Time, and they are expected to take hours to reach their targets.
On Saturday afternoon, President Biden rushed back from Delaware to an emergency national security meeting on the matter.
Israel has an “Iron Dome” security system which can shoot down enemy missiles, although it is unclear whether it will be able to fend off the full force of Iran’s attack.
Dozens of drones were seen flying from Iran over neighboring Iraq’s Sulaymaniya province, according to three security sources.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said via state media that it had ‘launched extensive drone strikes against targets in occupied territories’.
Iranian media reported that a second wave of drones has been launched, although details of their current location are not yet known.
IDF spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said it would take several hours for the drones to arrive in Israel, adding that sirens would be sounded in threatened areas.
The IDF said: ‘The air defense arrangement is on high alert at the same time as air force aircraft and navy ships that are on a mission to protect the country’s skies. The IDF monitors all targets.
The US also has several guided missile destroyers, including the Carney, pictured here, in the area
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said via state media that it had ‘launched extensive drone strikes against targets in occupied territories’, seen here
‘We ask the public to observe and follow the instructions of the Home Front Command and the official IDF announcements regarding the matter.’
Iran had threatened to hit back at Israel over an attack in Syria that Tehran says was an Israeli airstrike on an Iranian diplomatic building in Damascus.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei vowed retaliation in the wake of the Damascus attack, for which Tel-Aviv has yet to claim responsibility.
The April 1 attack destroyed Iran’s consulate building in the city and killed seven Revolutionary Guards, including the two generals.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned on Wednesday that Israel ‘must be punished and will be punished’, days after one of his advisers said Israeli embassies are ‘no longer safe’.