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WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. is sending additional troops to the Middle East in response to a sharp spike in violence between Israel and Hezbollah forces in Lebanon that has raised the risk of a greater regional war, the Pentagon said Monday.

Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder would provide no details on how many additional forces or what they would be tasked to do. The U.S. currently has about 40,000 troops in the region.

On Monday, the aircraft carrier USS Truman, two destroyers and a cruiser set sail from Norfolk, Virginia, headed to the Mediterranean on a regularly scheduled deployment, opening the possibility that the U.S. could keep both the Truman and the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, which is in the Gulf of Oman, nearby in case further violence breaks out.

“In light of increased tension in the Middle East and out of an abundance of caution, we are sending a small number of additional U.S. military personnel forward to augment our forces that are already in the region. But for operational security reasons, I’m not going to comment on or provide specifics.”

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AP AUDIO: US is sending more troops to the Middle East as violence rises between Israel and Hezbollah

AP correspondent Jackie Quinn reports additional U.S. forces are being sent to the Middle East.

The new deployments come after significant strikes by Israeli forces against targets inside Lebanon that have killed hundreds and as Israel is preparing to conduct further operations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday