As the war in the Middle East enters its fourth week, President Trump said Friday the administration is considering “winding down” military efforts in the region. The Israeli military said early Saturday it was once again striking targets in Tehran, as the United States and Israel claim to dominate the skies over Iran. The U.S. Department of Defense says Iranian missile and drone attacks are down about 90% from the early days of the war.
The Trump administration announced Friday it is temporarily lifting sanctions on some Iranian oil to ease one of the worst disruptions to the world oil market. The move applies to Iranian oil and oil products currently loaded on ships and will last until April 19, 2026. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the decision is expected to quickly add about 140 million barrels to the global market, which uses roughly 100 million barrels a day. The near-total halt of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has left more than 3,000 vessels stranded in the region, according to the International Maritime Organization, and contributed to crude prices topping $110 a barrel — about a 45% rise since the war began — with knock-on effects on U.S. gasoline prices.
The Pentagon says U.S. forces are increasingly using Apache helicopters and A-10 Warthog planes, a sign officials believe the Iranian threat has been sharply reduced. U.S. forces also report targeting Iran’s small, fast boats in the Persian Gulf.
More U.S. Marines are headed to the Middle East. NPR confirmed the USS Boxer group, carrying thousands of Marines from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, has left California and will take about three weeks to reach the gulf, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. That deployment is in addition to the USS Tripoli group, with more than 2,000 Marines, expected to arrive soon from Japan. U.S. Central Command declined to comment on the deployments or their missions.
When asked March 19 if U.S. troops would be sent to the region, Trump replied, “No. I’m not putting troops anywhere. If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you, but I’m not putting troops. And we will do whatever is necessary to keep the peace.” On Friday he suggested an off-ramp may be near: “We are getting very close to meeting our objectives as we consider winding down our great Military efforts in the Middle East with respect to the Terrorist Regime of Iran,” he wrote on Truth Social, listing progress he said had been made against Iran’s missile, navy, air force, air defenses and nuclear capability. He also said he wants other nations to help police the Strait of Hormuz.
Regional spillover continued. Israel said it struck a Syrian command center and weapons depots in southern Sweida province, where many Druze live, saying it acted to protect the Druze minority from Syria’s government. Deadly fighting broke out this week in southern Syria between government forces and Druze fighters. Turkey called the recent Israeli strikes on Syria a “dangerous escalation” and said the attacks were illegal; Turkey has previously supported militia groups in Syria.
Greg Myre, Quil Lawrence and Alex Leff contributed from Washington; Julia Simon from Los Angeles; Emily Feng from Turkey; and Miguel Macias from Spain.