US is considering deploying SECOND aircraft carrier near Israel in bid to stop other nations joining-in Hamas attacks on the Jewish state

A second US aircraft carrier could be deployed to the eastern Mediterranean along with another sent to the region following Hamas’ attack on Israel.

The USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest battleship, has already been mobilized along with a carrier strike group that includes other warships and a fleet of fighter jets.

Military officials are now weighing whether to also send a second carrier strike group led by the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower. The warship was already scheduled to visit the Middle East, but Pentagon leaders are now deciding whether it should accompany the USS Gerald R. Ford.

Placing both carriers and their escort vessels in the eastern Mediterranean, close to the coast of Israel and the Gaza Strip, would constitute a massive show of force that would also serve as a deterrent against other groups that might join the conflict. .

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Sunday that he ordered the Ford strike group to be ready to help Israel after the attack by Hamas that has left more than 1,000 dead on both sides.

Military officials are weighing whether to also send a second carrier strike group led by the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower to the eastern Mediterranean, where the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest warship, is also based.

The United States has deployed a carrier strike group led by the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest warship, to the eastern Mediterranean in response to Hamas’ unprecedented attack on Israel. Another aircraft carrier may also be sent to the region

Israelis walk past a blown-up police station in Sderot, which was destroyed during a battle with Hamas militants who had taken over the building

Americans are among the dead and missing.

The USS Gerald R. Ford is the Navy’s newest and most advanced aircraft carrier, and its approximately 5,000 sailors and fighter jet deck will be joined by cruisers and destroyers in a show of force intended to be ready to respond to any thing, by possibly stopping additional weapons from reaching Hamas and conducting surveillance.

America’s deployment of its most sophisticated and expensive military equipment marks a major show of force and comes alongside the promise of arms and equipment to the Israel Defense Forces.

A carrier strike group is a naval force consisting of an aircraft carrier at its center along with a fleet of support ships and often attack submarines. The United States has 11 air strike groups, each with enough firepower to deal with the forces of many small and medium-sized countries.

The large deployment reflects a US desire to prevent any regional expansion of the conflict. But the Israeli government formally declared war on Sunday and gave the green light for “significant military steps” to retaliate against Hamas.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, pictured left in March with his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant, said America could ‘further strengthen’ its military presence in the region ‘if required’

Along with the Ford, the US sent the cruiser USS Normandy and destroyers USS Thomas Hudner, USS Ramage, USS Carney and USS Roosevelt, and the US is adding Air Force F-35s, F-15s, F-16s and A-10s. fighter aircraft squadrons in the region.

“The United States maintains globally ready forces to further strengthen this deterrence posture if required,” Austin said in a statement.

In addition, the Biden administration will rapidly provide the Israel Defense Forces with additional equipment and resources, including ammunition. The first safety relief will start moving today and will arrive in the next few days, Austin said.

The Norfolk, Virginia-based carrier strike group led by Ford was already in the Mediterranean. Last week it was conducting naval exercises with Italy in the Ionian Sea. The carrier is on its first full deployment.

It is not clear whether Eisenhower would replace Ford or whether the two strike groups would remain there while the conflict continued.