US to deploy missile defense system, military personnel to Israel

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President Biden's administration will soon deploy an advanced missile defense battery to Israel along with roughly 100 U.S. troops to operate it, the Pentagon announced Sunday.

The move comes after Iran and its proxy terrorist groups launched massive waves of missiles against Israel earlier this year in April and again on Oct. 1. Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) has previously been deployed to Israel in 2019, but only for an exercise, Pentagon officials say.

"The THAAD Battery will augment Israel’s integrated air defense system. This action underscores the United States’ ironclad commitment to the defense of Israel, and to defend Americans in Israel, from any further ballistic missile attacks by Iran. It is part of the broader adjustments the U.S. military has made in recent months, to support the defense of Israel and protect Americans from attacks by Iran and Iranian-aligned militias," the Pentagon said in a statement.

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President Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu have had chilly relations in recent months.

Defense Department spokesman Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder announced the move to media on Sunday. It comes as the Biden's administration has been wary of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's handling of the conflict, both in Gaza and with the growing tensions in Lebanon.

Biden was asked why he approved the deployment on Sunday, and he replied with a brusque "To defend Israel."

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White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan reportedly told Israeli officials earlier this month that the U.S. expects "clarity and transparency" about Israel's plans for future strikes, specifically regarding any retaliation against Iran.

The Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, element gives the Ballistic Missile Defense System a globally transportable, rapidly deployable ability to intercept and destroy ballistic missiles inside or outside the atmosphere during their final phase of flight. (Missile Defense Agency/ U.S. Department of Defense)

"Our trust of the Israelis is very low right now and for a good reason," one U.S. official told Axios on Oct. 8.

The report comes after weeks of the Biden-Harris administration growing more and more willing to criticize Netanyahu's regime. They have repeatedly stated that they support Israel's right to defend itself, however.

The Pentagon will deploy U.S. troops inside Israel in an uncommon move amid war with Iran's proxies. (DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images)

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Iran's massive Oct. 1 missile barrage displayed the threat Iran poses to Israel as a regional power. While debris from hundreds of rockets and missiles rained down on Israeli territory, there were no Israeli fatalities reported.