The U.S. is sending an additional "few thousand" troops to the Middle East to bolster security and to be prepared to defend Israel if necessary, the Pentagon said Monday. The increased presence will come from the personnel needed to support multiple fighter jet squadrons, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters during a press briefing.

With Israel’s killing of Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah, the Pentagon is bracing for retaliatory action from Tehran’s network of militias and militant groups.