Pentagon to send additional U.S. troops to the Middle East

The U.S. Department of Defense will be deploying more American troops to the Middle East, the Pentagon confirmed to WORLD on Monday. Due to increased tensions in the region, the department decided it would send a small number of U.S. troops to the area, Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said. The new troops will augment forces already deployed to the Middle East, Ryder said.

Does this mean war is incoming? The department would not provide any further details about the deployment because of security concerns, Ryder said. The U.S. State Department over the weekend urged Americans in Lebanon to leave the country due to the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah. Commercial flights out of the country might not be available much longer, the State Department said.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about how Israel struck hundreds of Hezbollah-affiliated targets this morning.