WASHINGTON, October 17. /TASS/. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered to put 2,000 US soldiers to heightened alert for potential deployment in the Middle East due to the Hamas attack on Israel, but the final decision on their deployment has not been made yet, Pentagon Deputy Spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said in a written statement.

"Today, Secretary Austin placed approximately 2,000 personnel and a range of units on a heightened state of readiness through a prepare to deploy order, which increases DoD's ability to respond quickly to the evolving security environment in the Middle East. No decisions have been made to deploy any forces at this time," the statement reads.

According to the official, Austin "the Secretary will continue to assess [American] force posture and remain in close contact with allies and partners."

In addition, he approved a deployment extension of the Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier strike group, which is currently located in the eastern Mediterranean. The timeframe for the extension was not specified.

Previously, Fox News reported citing its sources that the Secretary of Defense ordered US forces to be "ready for deployment" in the Middle East to support Israel. It is currently unknown which US units will be involved, the report says, noting that the US forces will not be deployed to take part in hostilities. Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Pentagon picked approximately 2,000 servicemen to prepare them for a potential deployment in the Middle East. The picked servicemen are currently reportedly located in the Middle East and in Europe. According to the WSJ, the Pentagon’s decision indicates that Washington prepares to support Israeli forces, should they decide to carry out a ground operation in the Gaza Strip.