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Vice President JD Vance and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine both raised concerns about escalating the war in Iran as President Donald Trump weighed the possibility during a White House meeting on Friday, a source familiar with the matter and a US official told CNN. On Friday night, the US appeared to pause its bombing campaign on Iran after nearly two weeks of consecutive nights of strikes. Operations are “on a hold,” a Department of Defense source told CNN on Saturday. On Friday, Caine specifically raised concerns about the US munitions stockpile and other potential...

ISTANBUL—The conflict between the U.S. and Iran is escalating just as the two warring parties are running up against the limits of what they can achieve through military force.The conflict widened this week after Iranian-allied militants in Yemen began striking ships transiting a key Red Sea chokepoint, helping drive oil prices above $100 a barrel for the first time in two months on Thursday.The U.S., meanwhile, has escalated its bombing campaign in Iran in recent days, striking throughout the country during the most intense period of fighting since President Trump and Israel began bombing Iran in late February.Trump and other...

President Trump has set aside, at least for now, plans to sharply escalate the American military assault against Iran, with particular concern that intensifying the war could dangerously drain the Pentagon’s already diminished stockpile of Patriot antimissile interceptors and other air defense munitions in the Middle East. The threat to interceptor stockpiles is one of many considerations that have made a return to major combat operations a hugely risky endeavor, administration officials say. Mr. Trump and his top aides are also uneasy about the prospect of a widening war in the Middle East, the alienation of key Gulf allies who...

President Trump halted new US strikes on Iran as he weighs whether Tehran is ready to cut a deal — while a wider regional war appears to be spreading into another critical shipping corridor. After 13 consecutive days of attacks, Trump instructed the US military to pause any additional strikes against Iran Friday, Axios reported Saturday, which cited two people familiar with the decision. But the president has made clear that the temporary halt does not mean Washington is backing down. In a brief phone interview with France’s LCI news, Trump said he was still prepared to restart a major...

Donald Trump flew into an expletive-laden rant in the Oval Office as he increasingly loses patience over the war he started in Iran, according to someone who overheard the angry meltdown. The president launched into a raging tirade against Iran's leaders, referring to them as "scumbags" and "lunatics," while also spitting out a series of expletives during the White House meeting, a person who heard the comments told The Wall Street Journal. It comes after Trump's 'diaper nurse' left devoted letters to the president in his room with intimate messages.

IRGC and Ayatoilets threaten Israel, attack Kuwait, threaten that if regime falls, they'll use their stockpile of missiles on Iranian cities, so nyah. Pahlavi is calling on people to rise. Iranian citizen got video out asking the US to attack the power plants, because the Iranian people get very limited access to electricity anyway, and only 1,000 civilians have been hurt during Epic Fury, and the IRGC has killed tens of thousands, both in January and in 2019 and 2017. Just remove the cancer, or they will come back stronger than ever (with nukes?) and obliterate you....

Disapproval of President Donald Trump’s handling of Iran hit a record high in July. A majority of voters oppose U.S. military action, and nearly two thirds think the conflict will last at least a year. The latest Fox News survey finds 56% oppose U.S. military action against Iran, including 40% who "strongly" oppose. More Democrats oppose the war (84%) than Republicans support it (76%). Voters increasingly expect a long-term commitment. Today, 64% think the war will last a year or more, up 13 percentage points since May. *** There is also doubt the conflict will produce an agreement. About half...

Iran has managed to rebuild a significant amount of infrastructure destroyed during its war with the US and Israel in recent months, ranging from bridges to missile bases, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday. The report, based on a review of satellite imagery, suggested that the speed at which Tehran is restoring its damaged capabilities is the reason why it is continuing to hold its own against the US after hostilities renewed earlier this month over disputes relating to the Strait of Hormuz. One set of satellite images showed that an access road leading to an Iranian missile base...

TAMPA, Fla. — U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces successfully completed the 13th straight night of strikes against Iran, July 23, at 9 p.m. ET. CENTCOM targeted Iranian military command centers, drone storage facilities, communication networks, coastal surveillance sites, and maritime capabilities to further diminish the threat Iran poses to civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz. The international waterway remains open for transit despite recent attacks from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Commercial vessels continue to freely navigate the strait with U.S. military support. More than 50,000 U.S. service members are currently operating across the Middle East.

More than 150 medics have arrived at the US military hospital in Landstuhl, Germany, in recent days, the Wall Street Journal reported. The deployment could signal a potential escalation of US military operations in the ongoing Iran conflict.The Landstuhl Regional Medical Center in the Kaiserslautern district serves as one of the primary treatment facilities for US soldiers wounded in the Middle East. The arrival of additional medical personnel suggests preparations for a possible increase in casualties. Military preparations intensify Bombers stationed at bases in the United States and Great Britain are on high alert, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing...