Biden weighs more US defenses for Israel as the region prepares for Iranian retaliation

President Joe Biden is weighing more US defenses in the Middle as the US prepares for an Iranian retaliation against Israel that officials say could include an attack on American forces.

President Joe Biden is weighing more US defenses in the Middle East as the US prepares for an Iranian retaliation against Israel that officials say could include an attack on American forces. In a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday, Biden said the US would “support Israel’s defense against threats,” which would include “new defensive US military deployments,” according to a readout of the call. The statement did not detail what new deployments would occur ahead of an anticipated Iranian attack in response to the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran. According to several US officials, the Pentagon has discussed with US Central Command what adjustments to make to US force posture in the region, but no final decision had been made as of Thursday afternoon.  The officials said an Iranian response could occur in the coming days. The USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group, which includes the aircraft carrier, destroyers and other warships, has been operating in the Gulf of Oman in recent weeks. The strike group could potentially move into the Gulf of Aden or the Red Sea, where Navy warships have intercepted dozens of Houthi launches over the past several months. The USS Wasp amphibious assault ship and several other Navy vessels are currently operating in the Mediterranean Sea. The group includes a Marine expeditionary unit capable of carrying out an evacuation of American citizens from Lebanon if the US ordered such an evacuation. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) promised a “harsh” and “painful” response to the assassination. Israel has not commented on the killing.