By Pishtaz | 2024-10-21

The Iranian foreign minister ahead of the deployment of a US missile defense system to Israel appeared to be threatening US troops.

"The US has been delivering record amount of arms to Israel," Abbas Araghchi posted on X October 13.

His remarks came ahead of the arrival of US troops in Israel as part of the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery.

An advance team of US personnel and THAAD components arrived in Israel the previous day, with more to follow soon, Pentagon spokesman Maj. Gen Pat Ryder said in a statement October 15.

"The battery will be fully operational capable in the near future," he said.

'Visibly and tangibly committed'

The deployment comes as Israel prepares retaliation against Tehran for a major missile attack earlier this month, and the battery will boost Israeli defenses against another Iranian barrage.

Deploying the battery will put its approximately 100 US operators -- as well as the system itself -- on the ground in Israel.

"Putting US servicemembers in Israel proper shows that Washington is very visibly and tangibly committed to Israel's security and will fight if necessary," political scientist Raphael Cohen of the RAND Corporation told AFP.

Washington "likely hopes that this move will increase the deterrence vis-a-vis Iran and reassure the Israelis," he added.

Israel already has a multilayered network of air defenses including the Iron Dome, and the THAAD will complement these existing Israeli systems.

Countering Tehran

Ninety-five soldiers operate the THAAD system -- which was developed in the 1990s and first activated in 2008. It has six truck-mounted launchers with eight interceptors each, a radar and a fire control component, according to the US Congressional Research Service.

It is among the latest assets deployed to the Middle East by the US military to support Israel against Tehran-backed proxies.

The US Air Force on October 16 used B-2 stealth bombers against five hardened underground weapon depots in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, the Pentagon said in a statement.

For over a year, the pro-Tehran group has attacked vessels of various countries transiting the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden, the statement noted.