Dozens of U.S. troops have been deployed to Cyprus amid sharply escalating tensions in the Middle East and are preparing for a range of contingencies, including a possible evacuation operation from Lebanon for American citizens in the event of an all-out war, four U.S. officials told CNN. .
Pentagon spokesman Lt. Gen. Pat Ryder said earlier this week that the US military would deploy “a small number of US military personnel” to the Middle East.
But he refused to say how many soldiers were deployed, to which areas they were sent and to which units they belonged.
Cyprus played a key role in helping to evacuate foreign nationals from Lebanon during Israel’s war with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006, facilitating the departure and hosting of tens of thousands of people at the time as they fled the conflict, it says CNN.
Cyprus’s deputy government spokesman, Yannis Antoniou, told Reuters last month that Cyprus was again ready to help if needed.
The United Kingdom announced on Tuesday that it is sending 700 troops to Cyprus to prepare for a possible emergency evacuation of British citizens from Lebanon if it becomes necessary.
What did Starmer say?
“We have emergency measures in place, but I’m not going to go into the details of evacuation plans,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said, adding:
“Here in New York, at the UN General Assembly, I am very clear that this is a dangerous situation now and all parties must step back from the brink, not escalate.
We need a ceasefire and this must be settled through diplomatic means. We are sending very clear messages about this, very strong messages about this with key allies.
But I’m very concerned about the increasing escalation, which is not just day-to-day, but almost hour-by-hour right now.”
#Cyprus #troops #deployed #country #tensions #Middle #East #escalate
