US President Biden sends antimissile system THAAD and 100 US troops to Israel, deepening US Role
Extracts: The Iranian assault, which followed Israel’s assassination of high-level Iranian, Hamas and Hezbollah officials, failed to inflict significant damage as a result of US and Israeli efforts to shoot down the projectiles
No deaths occurred within Israel’s internationally recognized borders; one Palestinian man was killed in the occupied West Bank
However the barrage, demonstrated that Israel’s sophisticated missile defense system can be overwhelmed, allowing scores of missiles to hit Israeli soil
Quote
“The THAAD Battery will augment Israel’s integrated air defense system” said Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder
“This action underscores the United States’ ironclad commitment to the defense of Israel and to defend Americans in Israel, from any further ballistic missile attacks by Iran”
Both Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump have vowed to forcefully defend Israel while expressing support for a swift end to the war
Despite numerous disagreements between President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the course of the year-long war, the president’s decision to deliver the THAAD system before Israel’s attack represents another example of his willingness to trust Netanyahu and give him the benefit of the doubt
Harrison Mann, a former US Army officer who served as an analyst at the Defense Intelligence Agency:
Quote
“Once this battery is in place and Israel enjoys the protection of American air defenders, what incentive does Netanyahu have to keep his word and not strike the sensitive targets he promised to avoid?”
1. The THAAD system is specifically designed to shoot down ballistic missiles 2. The ground-based system doesn’t have any warheads and isn’t used to strike buildings or conduct offensive attacks 3. Rather, the THAAD system only counters incoming short, medium and intermediate-range ballistic missiles
