US President Biden sends antimissile system THAAD and 100 US troops to Israel, deepening US Role
Extracts: Harrison Mann, a former US Army officer:
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The shipment, which will be delivered at an *unknown date, is the latest example of Biden using
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“carrots” rather than sticks to induce Israel into less aggressive behavior
The decision to place more US troops in Israel amid an impending attack increases the risk of US casualties — a scenario that could drag the United States even further into the widening conflict
Mann added,
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"the risk to US soldiers who will crew the THAAD system is clear"
“Those soldiers will be operating from Israeli military bases which Iran already demonstrated the will and capability to strike, at a time when additional Iranian strikes are expected imminently”
Even if we make the unreasonably optimistic assumption, this THAAD battery can defeat any and all missiles headed its way,
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the Israeli military cannot guarantee the safety of these US troops from drones which have successfully penetrated Israeli bases in the past
Aaron David Miller, a Middle East expert:
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“If Iranian missiles hit a US soldier or pro-Iranian militias in Iraq or Syria kill or wound US personnel, there’s a high probability that the US would take kinetic action against Iran”
Each THAAD battery includes at least six truck-mounted launchers that carry up to eight missiles each
The system is widely sought after, particularly by Ukraine which is routinely under siege from Russian ballistic missiles
Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder:
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The U.S. military deployed the system to the Middle East *last year after the October 7 attack on Israel and in 2019 as part of a training event
Israel has other antimissile defenses, including its Iron Dome, Arrow and David’s Sling systems
