FACT CHECK: Have Thousands Of U.S. Troops Deployed To Israel?
A viral video shared on TikTok claims thousands of U.S. troops have deployed to Israel amid the country’s current conflict with Hamas.
@freddygonzalez7 Thousands of US troops deployed to Israel 🇺🇸🇺🇸 ##foryou##usmilitary##israel##war##foryoupage##Gaza ♬ original sound – Freddy Gonzalez
Verdict: False
The Pentagon has ordered 2,000 U.S. troops to be ready to deploy to the Middle East, according to the New York Times. The viral TikTok video is comprised of three clips, which all originally stem from Getty Images and show U.S. troops at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, Africa in March 2018.
Fact Check:
The U.S. has reportedly advised Israel to delay its ground invasion of the Gaza Strip to allow more time for hostage release negotiations, according to the Times of Israel. The outlet cited an Oct. 22 article from The New York Times, which originally made the revelation.
“Thousands of US troops deployed to Israel,” the video’s caption purports. The video shows footage of a large crowd of troops appearing to arrive on the ground before grabbing their equipment and filing onto a plane marked “U.S. Air Force.” The video has garnered over 12,000 likes as of writing.
The video does not show thousands of U.S. troops deployed to Israel, however. The video is comprised of three clips, which all originally stem from Getty Images and show U.S. troops at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti, Africa in March 2018.
“In this handout footage provided by U.S. Department of Defense, Soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division assigned to the East African Response Force (EARF), participate in an Emergency Deployment Readiness Exercise, March 16, 2018 at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti. The EARF trains to rapidly provide forces to protect American interests in East Africa,” the caption on all three videos reads.
Likewise, the Pentagon has ordered 2,000 U.S. troops to be ready to deploy to the Middle East, according to The New York Times. The troops, who are currently stationed in multiple locations, including the U.S. and Europe, are not likely to serve in combat roles if deployed, the outlet reported.
In addition, Check Your Fact found no other credible news reports suggesting thousands of U.S. troops deployed to Israel amid the country’s current conflict with Hamas. Furthermore, the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) has not publicly commented on the claim. (RELATED: Image Does Not Show Leaked US CENTCOM Memo)
Check Your Fact has contacted DOD/The Pentagon for comment and will update this piece accordingly if one is received.
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