The United States has withdrawn 120 military personnel from Israel and is advising Americans to reconsider any travel plans in the region amid a bloody conflict involving thousands of rocket exchanges and ground troops.
News of the personnel removal and travel advisory came late Thursday, when the Israel Defense Forces announced that it had deployed ground forces in a deadly conflict with Hamas and Palestinian militia groups near the Gaza Strip for four days.
US employees, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Thursday, they belonged to the US Central Command and the US European Command. The group landed on a C-17 military transport jet at Germany’s Ramstein Air Base.
“We made this decision to remove these individuals in coordination with their Israeli counterparts,” Kirby said.
Some employees were in Israel to plan for an upcoming bilateral event, but soon ended their trip, given the circumstances.
As the Department of Defense ejects some of its people, the State Department is urging Americans to reconsider any travel plans for Israel.
In a notice issued later on Thursday, the department appointed its advisors from Israel, the West Bank and Gaza to Level 3, suggesting a “reconsideration trip” to Americans.
It was previously at Level 2, which describes individuals in this area as “exercised caution”.
“The protests and violence may continue, some with little or no warning,” the advisory states.
Tel Aviv came under a barrage of 130 rockets launched by Hamas from the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, sending residents fleeing for refugees as air raid sirens flew into Israel’s second most populous city.
Israel’s Iron Dome defense system was activated later that night, with multiple interceptor missile ridges touching the sky.
The heavy bombing occurred early Tuesday evening following an Israeli attack that leveled a high-rise building in Gaza that housed the offices of several top Hamas officials. The strike first came in retaliation for Hamas’s aggression.
The two sides continued to shoot at each other throughout the day in the worst fight between Israel and the terrorist group since the 2014 war.
Since Monday’s clashes in Gaza, at least 83 people have died since Thursday. About 400 Palestinians have been injured.
Seven people have died from the Israeli side, including a 21-year-old soldier.
According to data from the Israel Defense Forces released on Thursday, more than 1,600 rockets have been fired into Israel since Monday.
With post wires
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