United States President Donald Trump warned Iran of potential strikes on its infrastructure, including bridges and electric power plants, saying the US military 'hasn't even started destroying what's left in Iran'.
Media reports based on intelligence sources say nearly half of Iran's missile launchers remain intact, while thousands of one-way attack drones are still part of its arsenal even after continuous strikes targeting military infrastructure over the past five weeks.
The USS Tripoli, carrying around 3,500 US Marines, has entered the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility, marking the deployment of one of America's largest amphibious assault ships into an active combat theatre in West Asia amid the ongoing conflict.
Rescue operations are currently underway, and the circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation, the command said.
Admiral Alireza Tangsiri was accused of leading efforts to disrupt maritime trade, including actions affecting the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran's state media cited the spokesperson for the Central Headquarters of Iran's military to claim that a United States military refuelling plane was shot down by a missile fired by resistance groups in western Iraq. The spokesperson further told Press TV that all six service members on board had been killed.
Karex, the Malaysian company that makes roughly one in five of the world's condoms -- about five billion a year, supplying Durex and Trojan among others -- announced this week that it is raising prices by up to 30 percent. The reason is the Strait of Hormuz.
In a testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence, also said that the threats to the US were set to expand collectively from more than 3,000 missiles at present to more than 16,000 missiles by 2035.
According to an official Iranian military statement, Qader anti-ship cruise missiles were launched at the carrier, forcing it to alter its position in the region.
US forces have launched search and rescue efforts for a US fighter jet, which several news outlets, including the Wall Street Journal and CNN, said had been shot down over Iran.
A US Air Force officer was rescued from deep inside Iran after his jet was shot down, following a two-day mission involving US Special Operations forces. The officer evaded Iranian forces for over 24 hours, hiding in a mountain crevice and hiking to high altitudes before being rescued.
Trump also asserted that US forces had struck hundreds of targets across Iran, including facilities of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and air defence systems.
The United States used an array of weapons in the strikes conducted against Iran as part of Operation Epic Fury on Saturday -- which included artificial intelligence services from Anthropic, according to a report by Reuters.
In Operation Sindoor, Pakistan had deployed additional squadrons of the Chinese-origin HQ-9 air defence systems, which could not do much against the Indian aircraft when they brought down multiple terror targets inside Pakistan.
The USS Abraham Lincoln has been operating in the Arabian Sea since the end of January.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump outlined key goals of the campaign, including degrading Iran's missile capabilities, dismantling its defence industrial base, eliminating naval and air power, preventing Tehran from acquiring nuclear capability, and protecting United States allies such as Israel, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The United States has temporarily lifted sanctions on the sale of Iranian oil already in transit to ease soaring global crude prices, making 140 million barrels available to the market.
16 days into the war, US forces were already running out of ground-attack missiles and Israel is about to expend its entire Arrow interceptor missiles by end March. To be sure, the Iranians are watching closely and that explains their defiant stance that 'Iran will end the war when it decides to do so and when its conditions are met', notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Although extensive air attacks have been carried out to destroy most of Iran's defence capabilities, the latter's resilience and sustenance during the war clearly indicate that the US landing force would encounter severe resistance in the operation, explains Commodore Venugopal Vengalil (retd).
Specifically, military experts are assessing if the 'Octopus' interceptor anti-drone system, produced in the UK to support Ukraine in countering Russian threats, could be repurposed to strengthen British protections against Iran's Shahed drones.
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
The LPG squeeze on India's restaurant sector is the quotidian face of a deeper crisis.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio urged its citizens to immediately depart from several Middle Eastern countries, citing "serious safety risks."
Trump may strike. He may announce productive talks and extend again. He may do both at the same time. Iran will not open the Strait on someone else's terms, so no matter what happens, that problem will remain unsolved. And the IRGC will still be collecting its $2 million toll from every ship bold enough to ask permission to pass.
The 'rescue' operation occurred within kilometres of Iran's underground tunnel complex at Isfahan, assessed by the IAEA and US intelligence as holding a substantial portion of the country's 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpile. Retired senior US military officers have highlighted that the mission's footprint -- hundreds of special operators, multiple heavy-lift aircraft deep inside Iran -- appears outsized for recovering a single airman. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
The military command clarified in a statement published on X that the aircraft were engaged in error during active combat operations on Sunday.
Israel has for more than two decades and several US presidencies worked to draw the United States into a full-scale war with Iran. Having finally achieved that, the last thing it wants is Trump declaring victory and going home, as he is prone to do. Ali Larijani was the figure most capable of handing Trump a negotiated exit with something to show for it. Without Larijani, the road to an exit gets considerably narrower. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
The question is no longer whether the war will expand. It has. The next few days will tell us whether the war stabilises around Hormuz or whether the Strait itself becomes the trigger for a far larger rupture. What to watch for over the next 48 hours is simple: Any move by the US toward direct naval control of the Strait; any credible Iranian attempt to disrupt or mine shipping lanes and, critically, whether energy infrastructure in the Gulf continues to be targeted.If those lines are crossed in tandem, the war will no longer be containable within the region.
Trump claims the United States is performing exceptionally well in its ongoing conflict with Iran, citing weakened Iranian military capabilities and a strong US position.
'Strikes into the Gulf countries are proof that the security guarantees offered by the US are ineffective and that the Gulf countries cannot rely on American security assurances for their safety.'
Israel and the United States had a plan. Iran punched back. And now the Gulf is reeling, the world is beginning to feel the pain and, as on date, no one in Washington or Tel Aviv appears willing to admit that the punch has landed, notes Prem Panicker, continuing his must-read blog on the war in the Middle East.
2025 has seen a sharp rise in lawsuits targeting IT services and consulting companies, which now increasingly offer proprietary digital platforms and cloud services.
'I don't want to be called a new Indian voter when I am an old Indian voter.'
Over 25 years, societies evolve and tastes change. Cinema absorbs and reflects this transformation. Picking only 25 films from the first quarter of the century is tough.
Does voter deletion controversy expose critical gaps in ECI verification procedures and safeguards protecting electoral roll integrity?
'He was like a sponge. He soaked up everything we taught him -- and when it came time to play, he'd squeeze out exactly what was needed on the board during tournaments.'
The verdict in the Google versus Epic Games antitrust case in the US has spread cheer among the Indian gaming and app developers. Ending a three-year legal battle, the San Francisco jury found that Google turned its Play app store and billing service into an illegal monopoly. American video game maker Epic Games, best known for Fortnite, had sued Google in 2020.
War 2 offers you exactly what you'd expect from a mass entertainer: some escapist fun, some truly knockout action scenes, and overall a good time at the movies, observes Mayur Sanap.
'It feels emotional because only me and the people who are close to me know exactly what we have been through on and off the court, and it has been everything except easy.'
The World Chess Championship remained deadlocked as the 10th game between Indian challenger D. Gukesh and defending champion Ding Liren of China ended in yet another draw on Saturday in Singapore.
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