US destroyer docks at Israeli port of Eilat amid regional tensions: Israeli media

By Lina Altawell

ISTANBUL (AA) – The US military destroyer USS Delbert D. Black​​​​​​​ has docked at the southern Israeli port of Eilat on Friday, according to Israeli media.

The Israeli military said the visit was “preplanned and part of ongoing coordination between Israeli and US forces.”

It described the docking as routine military cooperation amid heightened regional tensions.

A reporter for The Times of Israel shared a photograph on US social media company X showing the destroyer positioned a short distance from the shoreline near Eilat.

The docking came as tensions continued to rise between Washington and Tehran following the European Union’s decision to designate Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a “terrorist organization.”

The move came after Israel’s public broadcaster KAN reported on Thursday that a US military vessel was preparing to dock near the southern port of Eilat as part of heightened US-Israeli military coordination amid rising regional tensions involving Iran.

KAN said the step includes reinforced naval deployment and elevated defensive readiness as Israeli security agencies closely monitor US military movements.

The developments come as tensions have escalated between Tehran and Washington in recent weeks following US President Donald Trump’s statement that a “massive armada” was moving toward Iran, alongside his call for Tehran to “come to the table” for negotiations.

Iranian officials have warned that any US attack would draw a “swift and comprehensive” response while reiterating that Tehran remains open to talks only under what it describes as “fair, balanced, and noncoercive terms.”