U.S. beefs up Middle East forces ahead of Gaza truce talks

The U.S. shored up naval and air forces in the Middle East to help Israel fend off any major attack from Iran or Lebanon’s Hezbollah, ahead of a resumption of Gaza cease-fire talks planned for later this week.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier group, equipped with F-35C fighters, to speed up its arrival in the region and also dispatched the guided-missile submarine USS Georgia, according to a readout from a call with Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant on Sunday.

The move bolsters Israeli defenses and may deter Iran, which – along with its Hezbollah proxy – has vowed reprisals for the back-to-back assassinations of top militants in Beirut and Tehran almost two weeks ago.

Iran’s acting foreign minister, Ali Bagheri Kani, reiterated the country’s determination to punish Israel for the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in particular. Washington is keen to avoid a major flare-up three months before a presidential election. Israel has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility for Haniyeh’s death.

The U.S., Qatar and Egypt last week called for a new round of Gaza cease-fire talks this Thursday, an effort to resolve long-deadlocked negotiations between Israel and Hamas more than 10 months into their war. Hamas has pushed back against the proposal, saying discussions should center on implementing previous plans.

France, Germany and the U.K. endorsed the plan for talks on Monday and urged Iran to refrain from attacks.

Israel has agreed to attend the talks. One Israeli official said they would take place in Doha with focus on whether Hamas might relent on truce terms. Another Israeli official said the Arab mediators would confer with Hamas afterward. Israel has not yielded on its main terms, said the officials.

Hamas triggered the Gaza war when its militants invaded Israel on Oct. 7, with Lebanon’s Hezbollah and the Yemen-based Houthis engaging in rocket-fire battles in solidarity. All three groups are sponsored by Iran and designated terrorist organizations by the U.S.

Austin and Gallant discussed “efforts to deter aggression by Iran, Hezbollah and other Iran-aligned groups across the region” and progress toward securing a cease-fire and the release of hostages held in Gaza, according to the statement from the the U.S. Department of Defense.

Gallant’s office played up the “inter-operability” of Israeli and U.S. military systems, indicating the allies would fight as a united front.

Previous rounds of cease-fire talks have been held up in part by Israel’s determination to resume fighting after any pause to ensure Hamas is totally destroyed. Hamas has demanded a total Israeli withdrawal from the coastal Palestinian territory it has run since 2007, now partially destroyed by months of war.

Other sticking points include the number of hostages Hamas is prepared to release and when, and which Palestinian prisoners would be offered in return.

A deal that offers Hamas a reprieve could be enough to persuade Iran and its proxy groups to hold off on their promised attacks. But Israeli media has speculated a retaliation for the assassinations could come before the truce talks are scheduled to start.

Israel’s military campaign against Hamas continues, with a deadly strike on Gaza City attracting international condemnation at the weekend. The Israeli military said the attack, which Hamas authorities said killed about 100 people, was aimed at a Hamas “command and control center” embedded within a school and adjacent mosque and that at least 31 fighters were among the dead.

“These are fateful days,” Israel’s Maariv newspaper quoted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as telling his cabinet members, adding that he instructed them not to discuss the stand-off in public. Netanyahu’s office had no comment on the report.

But a rift still opened up in high office, after the Ynet news site quoted Defense Minister Yoav Gallant as speaking dismissively, during a close-door parliamentary session, of the concept of “total victory” which has been Netanyahu’s rallying cry.

Gallant’s spokespeople declined comment on the report, which drew a rebuke from Netanyahu. “When Gallant adopts the anti-Israel narrative, he harms the chances of reaching a hostage-release deal,” the prime minister’s office said in a statement.

Iran’s new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, urged the West to restrain Israel during a conversation with European Council President Charles Michel on Sunday, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.

“The double standards of the U.S. and some Western countries have made the Zionist regime more insolent,” Pezeshkian was quoted as saying.