Washington deployed a THAAD battery, designed to intercept incoming ballistic missiles, to Israel around a year ago.
The U.S. is sending an advanced anti-ballistic missile air defense system to Israel to shield against further Iranian aerial attacks as the possibility of strikes between the Israelis and Iran looms large over the war-torn region.
The Pentagon said on Sunday it was deploying a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, battery to Israel, along with a select number of personnel, to defend against Iran after Tehran launched two aerial attacks on Israel this year. Around 100 U.S. troops will reportedly travel to the Middle East with the advanced air defense system.
Iran launched close to 200 ballistic missiles toward Israel at the start of the month. The Israeli Defense Forces said most were intercepted, although some landed on Israeli territory, including air bases. There was no major damage, the IDF said.
Israel is thought to be weighing up its response to Iran’s barrage. U.S. officials think Tel Aviv has whittled down which Iranian sites it could target, NBC News reported on Saturday; this would likely be Tehran’s military and energy infrastructure, but not nuclear facilities. A final decision has not been made, according to the report. The Israeli Defense Ministry declined to comment on Sunday.
Israel had been consistently targeting high-ranking leaders allied with Tehran, including killing Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in the suburbs of Lebanese capital, Beirut.
Tehran had launched a combination of missile and drone attacks on Israel in mid-April, marking the first time Iran had directly attacked the Israelis from Iranian soil.
