The U.S. is stepping closer to deploying additional troops to the Middle East as the war between Israel and Hamas intensifies. Now a leading Republican lawmaker is preparing for American military forces to step into the conflict.
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) is leading the preparations. His committee is drafting an Authorization of Use for Military Force “in the event it’s necessary.”
Another 2,000 non-combat troops have been informed that they should be ready to deploy to the Middle East as war escalates.
McCaul said he hopes to never send the U.S. military into the conflict, but “if Hezbollah gets involved” the situation changes. He noted that Iran has already threatened to intercede over Israel’s ground offensive into Gaza.
The Texas Republican said he has had contact with the Biden administration over the draft. The Hill reported that the chairman would not confirm if the White House requested the draft to be made.
McCaul said the military presently does not have authorization to “hit Hezbollah or Hamas or any of Iran’s proxies, even the Iran-backed militias in Iraq.”
The US will prepare to send an army to Israel in case of war with Iran.
The US House of Representatives will develop a bill to use the US military in Israel in case the military conflict with Hamas escalates into a larger war with Iran, Michael McCaul, told.#Israel #USA pic.twitter.com/GyxUxEyFN9
— Ulfh3dnar (@Ulfh3dnar_) October 17, 2023
Asked by CNN if Iran is directly on the list’s authorized targets, McCaul said not initially. “I’d prefer not to put Iran as a nation-state in there, it would be more Iran proxies, you know, like Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran-backed Shi’ia militias.”
He added that if Tehran were to become directly involved, they would have to be on the authorized list.
There is growing concern in Washington that Iran will attempt to open a “second front” for Israel to face even as it fights Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip. Lebanon-based Hezbollah could launch attacks from the north as the IDF’s attention is focused on Hamas to the south.
It was Hamas who on Oct. 7 sprang a surprise attack on Israel’s southern border with Gaza. Terrorists killed over 1,400 Israelis, which of course pushed Tel Aviv into an immediate military response.
That response, as if anything else could be expected after the wanton slaughter of innocents, enraged the Arab world.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin this week ordered 2,000 U.S. troops to prepare to be deployed for advisory and medical roles in Israel. The Pentagon also redirected two carrier strike groups to the Mediterranean off Israel’s coast to ward off a possible Hezbollah attack.
