Since Hamas launched war against Israel one month ago on Oct. 7, the escalation in the region has seen no signs of slowing with many other terrorist groups within the Islamic Nation declaring support for and solidarity with the actions of Hamas and proclaiming their willingness and intent to take whatever actions necessary to destroy any country who supports Israel, often singling out the United States.
US bases in Syria and Iraq have come under attack by Iranian-backed Muslim terrorist groups over 27 times while Israel continues to fight on multiple fronts.
On Sunday, US Centcom posted a picture of the Ohio-class submarine arriving in its area of responsibility but did not share any other details of the deployment. The picture has been confirmed to depict the powerful boat transiting the Suez Canal, which connects the Mediterranean and Red Sea.
The post did not disclose what type of submarine was deployed but the U.S. fleet consists of 14 Ohio-class submarines capable of launching ballistic missiles plus four capable of carrying Tomahawk cruise missiles.
However, though they declined to name the vessel, a Navy spokesperson told Insider it is a guided missile sub (SSGN), not a ballistic missile sub (SSBN). The dry deck shelter used for special operations purposes is a giveaway though, as the Ohio-class SSGNs carry that.
This latest move adds to the growing US military presence in the Middle East which already includes two aircraft carrier strike groups sent to the eastern Mediterranean, along with warplanes and hundreds of troops.
The deployment of the nuclear submarine comes after last week's speech given by Iranian-backed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, in which he pledged that "all options were on the table" in reference to war with both Israel and the United States.
During a visit to Iraq over the weekend, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken issued a statement warning terrorist groups against escalation:
"The attacks, the threats coming from the militia that are aligned with Iran, are totally unacceptable and we will take every necessary step to protect our people," he said at a press availability. "We're not looking for conflict with Iran — we've made that very clear — but we'll do what's necessary to protect our personnel."
