2024-01-01 17:48:38
The United States announced, on Monday, that the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford will be returned to its home port, following months of additional service in the Mediterranean to provide protection for Israel.
The US Sixth Fleet confirmed, in a statement, that it will continue to “deter any state or non-governmental entity that attempts to escalate the crisis outside the Gaza Strip.”
The statement stated, “The Pentagon is constantly assessing the situation globally, and we will maintain extensive capabilities both in the Mediterranean and across the Middle East.”
He also indicated that he is cooperating with allies and partners to enhance maritime security in the region.
The Associated Press said that the carrier Ford and its accompanying warships will be replaced by the amphibious assault ship “USS Bataan” and its accompanying warships, “USS Mesa Verde” and “USS Carter Hall.”
She added that the three ships were in the Red Sea and were on their way towards the eastern Mediterranean during the past few days.
The aircraft carrier “Ford” was sent to the eastern Mediterranean to be close to Israel the day following the Hamas attacks on October 7th.
The carrier remained in the eastern Mediterranean, while the warships accompanying it sailed to the Red Sea, where they intercepted incoming ballistic missiles and attack drones launched from Yemen.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin visited Ford last month.
After expanding its scope of operation in the eastern Mediterranean, the aircraft carriers “Ford” and “USS Dwight D. Eisenhower” became part of the war group between Israel and Hamas, confirming US fears of a widening scope of the conflict.
Eisenhower recently patrolled near the Gulf of Aden, at the mouth of the Red Sea waterway, where several commercial ships have been attacked in recent weeks.
Helicopters from the aircraft carrier Eisenhower and its destroyer USS Gravely responded to a distress call from the container ship Maersk Hangzhou, which was attacked by four small boats belonging to the Iranian-backed Houthis.
The US Central Command said that the helicopters responded by firing on the boats, which led to the sinking of three of the four boats and the killing of their crews.
The continuing attacks on commercial ships have prompted some companies to suspend transit through the narrow Bab al-Mandab Strait, which connects the Gulf of Aden to the southern Red Sea and then the Suez Canal.
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