May 24, 2019 - World

White House will send 1,500 troops to Middle East amid Iran tensions

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan. Photo: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images

The White House told Congress on Friday that it plans to send an additional 1,500 troops to the Middle East amid tensions with Iran, Bloomberg reports.

Where it stands: The purpose of deploying additional troops is to "enhance protection of forces already in the region that are dedicated to missile defense, freedom of navigation in Persian Gulf waters and other objectives," according to a Pentagon notice to congressional defense committees obtained by Bloomberg.

Flashback: Yesterday, acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan denied reports that the Pentagon was entertaining plans to send as many 10,000 troops.

Go deeper: Why war with Iran is suddenly on the table

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Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

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  2. U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 9 p.m. ET: 3,111,902 — Total deaths: 133,195 — Total recoveries: 969,111 — Total tested: 38,032,966 — Map.
  3. Public health: More young people are spreading the virus — Cases rise in 33 states — Florida reports highest single-day death toll since pandemic began.
  4. Science: World Health Organization acknowledges airborne transmission of coronavirus.
  5. 1 🐂 thing: How the world could monitor for potential pandemic animal viruses.
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Tokyo in the time of coronavirus. Photo: Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty

Many politicians and public health officials sounded a similar lockdown refrain in the spring: let’s do this right so we only have to do it once.

Reality check: While some countries have thus far managed to keep cases under control after opening up, dozens of countries that had initially turned a corner are now seeing a worrying rebound. They have to decide if and how to return to lockdown — and whether their populations will stand for it.

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