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[Text/Observer Network Wang Kaiwen] The U.S. Department of Defense issued a statement on the evening of August 11 local time, saying that U.S. Secretary of Defense Austin has ordered the "Georgia" cruise missile nuclear submarine to go to the Middle East, and at the same time asked the "Abraham Lincoln" aircraft carrier strike group to speed up its journey to the region.

The Times of Israel quoted two sources on the 11th as saying that Israel assesses that Iran will launch a retaliatory attack on Israel in the next few days in response to the assassination of Haniyeh, leader of the Political Bureau of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), in Tehran.

Axios News Network quoted sources as saying that Israel believes that the Iranian attack may occur before the Gaza ceasefire and hostage release negotiations held on Thursday (August 15).

Sources familiar with the matter told Axios that Israeli Defense Minister Galant spoke with Austin on the 11th and told Austin that Iran's military preparations indicated it was planning to launch a large-scale attack.

According to a statement released on the U.S. Department of Defense website on the 11th, Austin spoke with Galant on the same day and reiterated that the United States "will take all possible measures to defend Israel" and "in view of the escalating situation in the region, the United States will strengthen its military deployment and capabilities in the Middle East."

Austin said during the call that he had ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln, which is equipped with F-35C fighter jets, toaircraft carrierThe strike group is accelerating its transfer to the Central Command area of ​​responsibility to enhance the combat capability of the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group. CNN reported that Austin had ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln on August 2.Carrier Battle GroupIt was headed to the Middle East, but stopped at Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.

According to the statement, Austin has also ordered the US Navy's Georgia cruise missile nuclear submarine to the Central Command area of ​​responsibility.

According to CNN, the US Navy said that the USS Georgia had recently been on a mission in the Mediterranean and had just completed training near Italy. The report said that the movements of US nuclear-powered submarines are almost completely confidential, and announced that the USS Georgia's actions were to send a "clear deterrent message" to Iran and its proxies. Both the United States and Israel believe that Iran and its proxies are preparing for a large-scale attack on Israel.

On July 31, local time, Hamas Political Bureau leader Haniyeh was killed in an attack in Tehran after attending the inauguration ceremony of the new Iranian president. Both Hamas and Iran accused Israel of launching the attack and vowed revenge.

According to the Islamic Republic News Agency of Iran, Ali Mohammad Naini, spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran, said on the 11th that the assassination of Haniyeh in Tehran was a blatant violation of the UN Charter and that Iran would respond to Israel's "stupid behavior" at the "appropriate time."

However, Axios News quoted sources on the 11th as saying that the debate within Iran over whether to launch an attack on Israel is still ongoing, and Iran's decision may still change.

The source said Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is pushing for a harsher and more extensive response than the April 13 attack, but Iran's new President Pesakhiasyan and his team of advisers believe that it is not in Iran's interest to escalate the situation in the region now.

The U.S. Department of Defense said in a statement that Austin and Galant discussed the two countries' "efforts to deter aggression by Iran, Hezbollah, and other Iran-aligned groups" during their call on the 11th.

According to CNN, Hezbollah in Lebanon fired multiple rockets at northern Israel on the evening of the 11th local time. Hezbollah said in a statement that the attack was to support the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and retaliate against Israel's attack on southern Lebanon.

This article is an exclusive article of Observer.com and may not be reproduced without authorization.