A US Marine rapid response force is moving toward the eastern Mediterranean Sea, two officials told CNN on Sunday, amid concerns over the war in Gaza broadening into a regional conflict.
The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, aboard the USS Bataan amphibious assault ship, was operating in the waters of the Middle East in recent weeks, but it began making its way toward the Suez Canal late last week, the officials said.
The Bataan is currently in the Red Sea and is expected to pass into the eastern Mediterranean soon, one of the officials told CNN.
The move will place the Marine unit closer to Lebanon and Israel as the US is warning citizens to leave Lebanon. One of the typical roles of a Marine Expeditionary Unit is to help civilians evacuate.
The US Defense Department has not yet officially confirmed the move, which comes amid continued tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border.
Last week, the US State Department issued a security alert which advises US citizens in Lebanon to leave right away.
On Friday, as Israel expanded its ground campaign in Gaza, the US embassy in Beirut once again urged Americans to “leave now,” warning that the best time to leave a country is “before a crisis.”