The war in the Middle East has moved into its fourth week with no obvious endpoint. Friday, President Trump said the administration is weighing a plan to “wind down” military operations in the region, even as U.S. and Israeli forces continue strikes and assert control of airspace over Iran. The Pentagon reports Iranian missile and drone attacks have fallen roughly 90% from the conflict’s opening days.
The administration also announced a temporary easing of sanctions on some Iranian oil to help relieve a severe disruption in global energy markets. The measure applies to Iranian crude and oil products already loaded on tankers and is set to run until April 19, 2026. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the move should quickly add about 140 million barrels to world supplies; global demand is roughly 100 million barrels per day. Meanwhile, a near-complete halt of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has left more than 3,000 vessels stranded in the region, according to the International Maritime Organization, and helped push crude prices above $110 a barrel — about a 45% increase since the fighting began — feeding through to higher U.S. gasoline prices.
U.S. forces say they have shifted to heavier use of Apache attack helicopters and A-10 Warthog close-air-support aircraft, a sign officials believe the Iranian threat has been substantially diminished. U.S. units are also targeting Iran’s small, fast boats operating in the Persian Gulf.
At the same time, additional U.S. Marines are being sent to the region. NPR confirmed that the USS Boxer group, carrying thousands of Marines from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, has departed California and is expected to take about three weeks to reach the Gulf, according to two U.S. officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. That movement supplements the USS Tripoli group, which carries more than 2,000 Marines and is expected to arrive from Japan. U.S. Central Command declined to comment on the deployments or their missions.
When asked on March 19 whether U.S. troops would be sent to the region, the president replied, “No. I’m not putting troops anywhere. If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you, but I’m not putting troops.” On Friday he suggested a drawdown could be near, writing on Truth Social that the U.S. was “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,” and listing progress against Iran’s missile, naval, air and nuclear capabilities. He also urged other countries to help secure the Strait of Hormuz.
The conflict continues to spill into neighboring states. Israel said it struck a Syrian command center and weapons depots in southern Sweida province, citing actions taken to protect the Druze minority from Syria’s government. Heavy fighting erupted this week in southern Syria between government forces and Druze fighters. Turkey condemned the Israeli strikes as a “dangerous escalation” and called them illegal; Ankara has previously provided support to armed groups inside Syria.
As dynamics shift on the ground and at sea, officials stress the situation remains fluid: attacks have decreased from the war’s peak but regional tensions and military movements continue to create uncertainty for civilians, shipping and energy markets.
Reporting contributions came from Greg Myre, Quil Lawrence and Alex Leff in Washington; Julia Simon in Los Angeles; Emily Feng in Turkey; and Miguel Macias in Spain.