US sends USS Wasp assault ship and Marines to eastern Mediterranean

The U.S.Navy amphibious assault ship USS Wasp and the Marines aboard are being sent to the eastern Mediterranean to serve as a deterrent and provide the U.S.

military with options as tensions continue to rise between Hezbollah and Israel along the border with Lebanon, according to three U.S.officials.The officials stressed that the ship's movement is not an indication that the U.S.

is planning to move American citizens out of Lebanon, but that it is moving for deterrence reasons similar to the earlier deployments of the amphibious ship USS Bataan and the aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford following Hamas' Oct.7 attack against Israel.Currently on a scheduled deployment to Europe, the Wasp's transit toward the eastern Mediterranean will serve to deter the war between Hamas and Israel from becoming a broader regional conflict, U.S.

officials said.The ship's move "is being done for deterrence purposes and to promote regional stability," said one of the officials.The amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD 1) pulls into port at Naval Station (NAVSTA) Rota, Spain, June 25, 2024.Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Drace Wilson/U.S.NavyThe Wasp will be joined in the eastern Mediterranean by the USS Oak Hill, which has already been operating in the Mediterranean.

The USS New York, the third ship that makes up the Wasp's Amphibious Ready Group, will soon join the other two ships in the eastern Mediterranean.a U.S.

official said.Amphibious Ready Groups and the 2,200 Marines aboard are trained for a wide variety of missions, including the evacuation of large numbers of American citizens from conflict zones.The Wasp is currently equipped with AV-8 Harrier jets and helicopters, but it is not currently carrying tilt-rotor MV-22 Osprey aircraft that can transport personnel over long distances and which would typically be used to transport a large number of people.MORE: Israel is 'closer to war' with Hezbollah than ever, senior Israeli official saysAnother U.S.official stresse...