- A US Navy carrier strike group is heading for Israel after the deadly Hamas attacks on Saturday.
- These ships — which include the Navy's most advanced carrier — are heavily defended and well armed.
- But they may be sailing into dangerous waters as Lebanon's Hezbollah becomes more involved.
The US Navy dispatched a carrier strike group to waters near Israel after brutal attacks over the weekend by the Hamas militant group. The warships are well armed, but they may be entering a hostile environment, dangerous waters with foes who possess anti-ship missiles.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Sunday announced the movement of the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to the eastern Mediterranean. This collection of ships includes the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, the guided missile cruiser USS Normandy, and the guided missile destroyers USS Thomas Hudner, USS Ramage, USS Carney, and USS Roosevelt.
Additionally, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the military has "taken steps to augment US Air Force F-15, F-16, and A-10 fighter aircraft squadrons in the region." It said "the US maintains ready forces globally to further reinforce this posture if required."
The retasking of US firepower came a day after Hamas launched surprise attacks against Israel, killing at least 800 people — mostly civilians — and injuring thousands more. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) responded with a massive aerial bombarding campaign against what it says are Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, and has mobilized hundreds of thousands of troops, as well as heavy armor, in what appears to be preparations for a major ground invasion of the densely populated enclave.
USS Gerald R. Ford, which is leading the strike group, is the Navy's most advanced aircraft carrier — powerful ships that have long been used as a show of military might, often for the purpose of deterrence. The Ford, which carries a powerful air wing, is complemented by a collection of warships able to not only launch guided missiles but also engage incoming threats to the strike group.
"Strengthening our joint force posture, in addition to the materiel support that we will rapidly provide to Israel, underscores the United States' ironclad support for the Israel Defense Forces and the Israeli people," Austin said on Sunday. "My team and I will continue to be in close contact with our Israeli counterparts to ensure they have what they need to protect their citizens and defend themselves against these heinous terrorist attacks."
It is unclear, exactly, where the strike group is headed, but an IDF spokesperson said on Monday that the American message behind its military movement toward Israel's shores is that any other militant group that might be planning to attack should reconsider its efforts.
"What they're saying," the spokesperson said, "and these are not my words, is, to all of the other terrorist organizations in the region — and their puppeteers in Tehran, their Iranian masters — if you think that this is a good time to join in the fight and attack Israel from other fronts, think again. That is the American message, and that is a message that we totally approve."
His comments come amid sporadic exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based militant group that's allied with Hamas and likewise backed by Iran.
Bouts of fighting on Sunday and Monday have raised concerns that a Hezbollah may become more involved and open up second front amid Israel's war against Hamas, sending the crisis spiraling into a deadly regional conflict and possibly drawing US forces into the mix.
A Hezbollah spokesperson already threatened the US, warning that if Washington intervenes directly then all of its assets will become targets.
Hezbollah is considered to be the "world's most heavily armed non-state actor," according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a Washington-based think tank. It possesses a massive arsenal of ballistic, anti-tank, and anti-ship missiles, as well as a huge stockpile of unguided artillery rockets. Altogether, CSIS says Hezbollah's rocket arsenal may be as large as 130,000 munitions.
But the fact that Hezbollah has anti-ship capabilities in particular means that the US forces inbound to the eastern Mediterranean may not be sailing through uncontested waters, as heavily defended and advanced as these warships are.
According to CSIS, one such capability is the C-802 medium-range anti-ship cruise missile, which was developed by China decades ago and sold to Iran, which later developed its own variant. It has a range of nearly 75 miles and a warhead that weighs nearly 365 pounds. Another missile is the Russian-developed Yakhont, which has a range of over 186 miles and a warhead that weights 440 pounds. Hezbollah has fired anti-ship missiles at Israeli forces in the past.
Firing on a US carrier strike group would be a major escalation, but forces in the Middle East, like the Houthis in Yemen, have taken shots at US warships, though not without punishment. Still, these capabilities are threats US crews will need to factor into any operations within range.
Meanwhile, as tensions flare around Israel's border with Lebanon, the IDF is massing forces and heavy armor in what appears to be preparations for a major ground invasion. A spokesperson said on Monday that more than 300,000 reserve troops have been mobilized to northern and southern Israel, as fighter jets continue to bombard Gaza, killing hundreds of Palestinians and injuring several thousand more.
Watch: Here's how Hamas breached Israel's top-tier security
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