10:20 pm ET March 13, 2026
Trump objectives for ending war ‘different’ than Netanyahu’s, president says
Michael Loria
President Trump told reporters Friday evening that his objectives around ending the war on Iran “might be a little different” than those of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The president did not elaborate on the distinction. Critics have said Trump allowed Israel to push the United States into war.
The president’s comments come as he also told reporters again that he couldn’t say exactly when but that the war would last as long as “necessary.”
“I can’t tell you that,” Trump said. “I mean, I have my own idea. But what good does it do? It’ll be as long as it’s necessary. They’ve been decimated. The country’s their country’s in bad shape. The whole thing is collapsing.”
The president in launching the war said it was aimed at eliminating Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs although his objectives have seemed to shift over the course of two weeks of conflict.
7:36 pm ET March 13, 2026
Trump announces strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island
Michael Loria
President Trump announced Friday evening that U.S. military forces had struck Kharg Island, an Iranian island in the Persian Gulf that processes the majority of the country’s oil exports.
“The United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island,” the president said in a statement.
Trump noted U.S. forces left the island’s oil infrastructure intact but gave the Iranians an ultimatum if the country continues its stranglehold on oil exports in the region.
“I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island,” the president said. “However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
6:33 pm ET March 13, 2026
US offers up to $10M reward for info on top Iranian leaders
Terry Collins
The U.S. government is offering “a reward of up to $10 million for information on the key leaders of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its component branches,” according to theRewards for Justicewebsite.
With the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran entering a third week, the government is seeking info on 10 Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, Deputy Chief of Staff in the Supreme Leader’s Office Ali Asghar Hejazi, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani, and Director and Minister of Intelligence and Security Esmail Khatib.
“These individuals command and direct various elements of the IRGC, which plans, organizes, and executes terrorism around the world,” the website said, adding that the men “play a central role in Iran’s use of terrorism as a key tool of Iranian statecraft.”
In a translated March 13 post on X, Larijani said, “Brave people. Brave officials. Brave leaders. This combination cannot be defeated.”
The U.S. also wants information on several unnamed people with high-ranking titles in the Iranian power structure. This includes the secretary of the Defense Council, the IRGC commander, and an adviser to the supreme leader.
5:11 pm ET March 13, 2026
Oil pushes higher to end Friday, gas likely to follow
Andrea Riquier
Oil prices pressed higher on March 13, and will likely pull gasoline prices in their wake, even as demand for fuel looked to increase.
The price of a barrel of crude neared $103 around 4 PM Eastern, and gas averaged $3.644 nationally, according to GasBuddy’s tracker. Brent crude, the global benchmark, is up more than 52% compared with a month ago, suggesting gasoline prices, which follow with a lag, have more room to rise.
Meanwhile, spring break in some parts of the country and generally warmer weather and outdoor activities mean more demand for driving.
At $3.59, the average on March 12, gas prices were in line with averages from 2024, AAA said Thursday. That year, however, prices peaked mid-spring and trailed lower over the remainder of the year. With so many variables in play right now, it may take oil − and gas – longer to stabilize this time around.
4:48 pm ET March 13, 2026
Lebanon toll nears 800, Beirut swells with refugees
Reuters
Israel destroyed a bridge in southern Lebanon on Friday and dropped leaflets in Beirut threatening Gaza-scale devastation as it deployed more troops to fight Iran-backed Hezbollah and warned of more attacks on the country’s infrastructure.
As Israeli warplanes pounded Beirut’s suburbs with air strikes, Lebanon’s interior minister said authorities were unable to accommodate the hundreds of thousands of people who have sought refuge in the capital.
Israeli strikes have killed 773 people in Lebanon since March 2, Lebanon’s state news agency said on Friday, citing the health ministry.
Israel launched its offensive against Hezbollah after it opened fire on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader at the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.
4:42 pm ET March 13, 2026
Trump’s shifting Iran war endgame
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Since the U.S. and Israel first attacked Iran on Feb. 28, President Trump has floated several endgames, sometimes within the same day.
In a video address in the early morning hours as the first bombs fell on Iran, Trump urged Iranians to seize “your only chance in generations” and “take over your government.” But by the next day, he said Iran’s leaders “want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them,” he told The Atlantic.
Trump told Axios on March 5 that he must be personally involved in picking the country’s new leader. Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed in the war’s first salvo and his his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has assumed leadership of the country.
In a post the next day, Trump said there would be no talks and demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender.” Asked to elaborate, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, later said Iran would not “come out and say that themselves,” and Trump consider Tehran to have surrendered when the country no longer posed a threat.
By March 13, Trump had a new benchmark for the end of the war – “when I feel it in my bones,” he told Fox News.
1:09 pm ET March 13, 2026
Trump says he knows Iran war is over ‘when I feel it in my bones’
Terry Collins
President Donald Trump said he’ll know exactly when the war in Iran will be over during an interview on Fox News Radio on March 13.
“When it’s over, and I don’t think it’s going to be long, when it’s over, this is going to bounce back right back,” Trump told Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, host of “The Brian Kilmeade Show.” “So fast.”
Kilmeade then asked the president when he will know when the war is over.
“When I feel it,” Trump said. “When I feel it in my bones.”
Trump also told Kilmeade that he believes new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is alive, echoing comments by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth to reporters duringa war briefinghours earlier.
“I think he probably is. I think he’s damaged, but I think he’s probably alive,” Trump said about the Iranian leader. “I believe he’s alive in some form, yeah.”
Trump went on to say that Iran is being hit “harder than anybody since World War II,” with more to come in the next few days.
12:26 pm ET March 13, 2026
Trump thinks Putin might be helping Iran ‘a little bit’
Terry Collins
President Donald Trump said he thinks Russian President Vladimir Putin may be helping Iran a “little bit” in the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iranduring an interview on Fox News Radio on March 13.
“I think he might be helping him (Iran) a little bit, yeah, I guess. And he probably thinks we’re helping Ukraine, right?” Trump told Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, host of “The Brian Kilmeade Show,” according to Reuters.
“Yeah, we’re helping them also,” Trump added, further referring to Ukraine, which has been warring with Russia since 2022.
Trump’s comments come after he spoke with Putin on March 9. Trump said he had a “very good call” with Putin about Ukraine and the Middle East.
12:20 pm ET March 13, 2026
Oil tops $100 again, economy falters
Andrea Riquier
Brent crude prices breached $100 a barrel midday Friday and stocks reversed earlier gains to trade mostly lower amid weaker-than-expected economic data and no clear end in sight to the U.S.-Iran war. Oil’s global benchmark was trading near $102 around noon Eastern time, and the S&P 500 was down 0.3%.
Gas prices hovered at about $3.644 a gallon nationally, GasBuddy reported.
Earlier in the morning, the Commerce Department said that the economy grew just 0.7% in the final three months of 2025, a sharp downgrade from earlier estimates. Orders for durable goods – things like machinery that last a long time – were below analyst expectations in January. And consumer sentiment fell in the University of Michigan’s first reading for March.
Although most of the data released Friday morning was old news, it showed the economy had “less momentum than previously reported,” said Don Rismiller, chief economist for Strategas, in a client note. “We are raising our U.S. recession odds in 2026 from 20% to 25%.”
11:20 am ET March 13, 2026
Marines heading to the Middle East, Wall Street Journal reports
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
A Marine expeditionary force has been ordered to the Middle East, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday, citing two unnamed U.S. officials.
The newspaper said defense chief Pete Hegseth had approved a request from U.S. Central Command for a Marine unit.
A Pentagon official told USA TODAY: “Due to operations security we do not discuss future or hypothetical movements.”
11:12 am ET March 13, 2026
How much is the Iran war costing taxpayers?
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
11:07 am ET March 13, 2026
Trump hints at Navy escorts in Strait of Hormuz but military says not yet
Bart Jansen
Trump told Fox News on March 13 that U.S. ships would escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz “if we needed to” but his Pentagon leaders said the military is concentrating on Iran’s missiles, drones and navy first.
The fighting has nearly halted shipments through the strait, which handles 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas. Total oil output from the Middle East is estimated at 7 million to 10 million barrels per day or 7% to 10% of global demand.
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth the only thing blocking the key shipping channel was Iran firing on ships. He said the military would work to reopen the strait.
But Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called the strait a “tactically complex environment.”
“Before I think we want to take anything at scale through there, we want to make sure we do the work pursuant to our current military objectives to do that safely and smartly,” he said.
11:04 am ET March 13, 2026
At least 2,000 killed in Iran war
Bart Jansen
At least 2,000 people have been killed in the Middle East during the U.S-Israeli war on Iran that began Feb. 28, according to Reuters.
The deaths have come in neighboring countries hosting U.S. military bases and in Lebanon, where Israel is trading airstrikes with Hezbollah, a militant group supported by Iran.
- Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations said March 6 at least 1,332 people had been killed since the war began.
- Lebanese authorities said at least 687 people had been killed in Israeli strikes. The World Health Organization said at least 98 were children.
- Iraqi health authorities said at least 30 people had been killed, mostly members of the Shi’ite Popular Mobilization Forces.
- Israel’s ambulance service said 12 people have been killed, including nine in an Iranian missile strike on Beit Shemesh near Jerusalem. The Israeli military said two soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon.
- The United States has lost 13 service members, including six aboard an aircraft refueling tanker that crashed over western Iraq after a collision with another U.S. jet.
- The United Arab Emirates’ defense ministry said six people have been killed in Iranian attacks.
- Kuwait authorities reported six deaths.
- Syria’s state news agency said four people were killed when an Iranian missile struck a building in Sweida.
- Oman, which has been hosting mediation talks between the U.S. and Iran, said two people were killed in a drone strike on an industrial zone. One person was killed when a projectile hit a tanker off the coast of Muscat, the vessel’s manager said.
- Sauid Arabia said two people were killed when a projectile fell on a residential area in Al-Kharj City.
- Bahrain’s interior ministry said two people were killed in separate attacks, one in a residential building in Manama.
- France said one soldier was killed and six wounded in a drone attack in northern Iraq.
10:07 am ET March 13, 2026
Iran war upends Middle East
8:48 am ET March 13, 2026
Trump doesn’t want US involved in ‘nation building,’ Hegseth says
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said President Donald Trump does not want the U.S. to be involved in “democracy building” or “nation building” in Iran, unlike past presidents, whose wars had “expansive, nebulous mission sets that kept changing overtime.”
8:42 am ET March 13, 2026
Caine calls Strait of Hormuz ‘tactically complex environment’
Bart Jansen
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said the only thing blocking the Strait of Hormuz is Iran firing on ships but that the military would work to reopen commercial shipping.
“The only thing prohibiting transit in the straits right now is Iran shooting at shipping,” Hegseth said. “It is open for shipping should Iran not do that.”
The reason to destroy Iran’s navy was that Tehran had interrupted shipping for decades, Hegseth said.
“That’s not a strait we’re going to allow to remain contested or with a lack of flow of commercial goods,” Hegseth said. “We’re working with you to make sure that energy flows.
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declined to say what steps might be taken but said the military is studying its options.
“It’s a tactically complex environment,” Caine said. “Before I think we want to take anything at scale through there, we want to make sure we do the work pursuant to our current military objectives to do that safely and smartly.”
8:41 am ET March 13, 2026
‘Today will be our busiest day,’ Caine says
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, talked about the morale of soldiers and said Friday would be the busiest day since the start of the Iran war almost two weeks ago.
“When I asked these soldiers yesterday, what is it that you need from the secretary and I,” Caine said. “They looked at each other, paused for a moment and looked back at me and said, ‘more rounds, sir.’”
“Our joint force will continue today against the enemy from the land, sea, and air,” he said. “We remain deeply grateful for their service and for the third time today, I’ll mention that today will be our busiest day.”
8:39 am ET March 13, 2026
Investigator appointed to probe school strike
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said U.S. Central Command has designated an investigating officer to complete an investigation into the strike on a school in southern Iran that killed at least 175 people, many of them children. The officer is outside U.S. Central Command, Hegseth said.
“We don’t target [civilians], Iran does,” Hegseth said.
8:39 am ET March 13, 2026
Oil stabilizes, gas prices jump
Andrea Riquier
Oil prices were up fractionally on Friday compared to the day before, near $99 per barrel shortly before the stock market opened. Stock futures rose and the volatility index, sometimes called Wall Street’s “fear gauge,” retreated.
On Friday morning, Reuters reported that an India-flagged oil tanker had sailed out of the east of the Strait of Hormuz carrying gasoline bound for Africa, even as analysts warned that that development would do little to ease the supply crunch around the world.
In the U.S., gas prices, which follow those of oil with a bit of a lag, were higher. The national average as of 8:30 AM ET was $3.644 a gallon, according to GasBuddy. That’s 24% higher than last month’s average. In some parts of the West, prices are well over $4 a gallon.
8:21 am ET March 13, 2026
Hegseth calls tanker casualties ‘heroes’
Bart Jansen
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth called the four airmen killed in the crash of an aircraft refueling tanker “heroes” and said their sacrifice was necessary in pursuit of peace.
“War is hell. War is chaos. As we saw yesterday with the tragic crash of our KC-135 tanker, bad things can happen,” Hegseth said. “American heroes, all of them.”
“Their sacrifice will only recommit us to the resolve of this mission,” Hegseth added. “War in this context and in the pursuit of peace, is necessary.”
Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the military is still treating the incident as a rescue and recovery mission for the two remaining crew members of the plane.
8:20 am ET March 13, 2026
Rescue still underway after air tanker crash
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the military is still treating the crash of a KC-135 air tanker as an “active rescue and recovery operation.” Four airmen have been recovered, he said.
U.S. Central Command announced hours earlier that four of the six servicemembers on board are confirmed dead.”Please keep these brave airmen, their families, friends and units in your thoughts,” Caine said.
8:15 am ET March 13, 2026
Hegseth says ‘don’t need to worry about’ Strait of Hormuz
Bart Jansen
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said U.S. military has hit 15,000 targets since the war began Feb. 28, destroying Iran’s air force and navy, and said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz was the result of desperation.
“They are exercising sheer desperation in the Straits of Hormuz,” Hegseth said. “Something we’re dealing with. Have been dealing with it. Don’t need to worry about it.”
8:15 am ET March 13, 2026
New Iranian leader ‘wounded and likely disfigured,’ Hegseth says
Cybele Mayes-Osterman
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth told reporters on Friday that Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is “wounded and likely disfigured.”
Hegseth questioned why the younger Khamenei, whose father was killed by U.S. and Israeli forces early in the war, had put out a written statement the prior day with no video or audio.
“Why a written statement? I think you know why,” he said.
7:53 am ET March 13, 2026
US to hit Iran ‘very hard’ over next week, Trump says
Jeanine Santucci
President Donald Trump said in a FOX News interview that aired Friday that the United States will hit Iran “very hard over the next week.” He also said the United States would help escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz “if we needed to.”
Just after midnight Friday, Trump said in a post on social media that the U.S. is “totally destroying the terrorist regime of Iran.”
“Watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today,” Trump wrote.
7:35 am ET March 13, 2026
Pentagon chief to give Iran war updates
Jeanine Santucci
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine are expected to give a news conference Friday morning at 8 a.m. EDT with updates on the war effort against Iran.
They will address the media at the Pentagon.
7:32 am ET March 13, 2026
Toronto ups security for protest after shots fired at US Consulate
Jeanine Santucci
Police in Toronto, Canada, said they would have an enhanced presence near the U.S. Consulate this weekend as thousands of protesters against the war in Iran and counter-protesters are expected to gather for an annual observance in support of the Palestinians on Saturday.
The Toronto Police Service cited recent incidents including when two suspects fired shots at the U.S. Consulate building earlier in the week and other shootings at synagogues in the area. The shooting at the Consulate on Tuesday caused damage to the building but nobody reported injuries, police previously said.
Toronto Police Service Superintendent Craig Young said the demonstration is expected to start around noon on Saturday and is expected to draw about 3,000 protesters and counter-protesters. Given “geopolitical tensions” around the world, that number could be higher, Young said.
Al-Quds Day, or International Quds Day, is an annual observance held on the last Friday of Ramadan to support Palestinians. It began in Iran in 1979. Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, in his first address this week called for participation in Al-Quds Day on Friday,
6:19 am ET March 13, 2026
Four US service members killed in plane crash over Iraq
Kim Hjelmgaard
Four of the six crew members aboard a U.S. military refueling aircraft that crashed in western Iraq on Thursday have been killed, the U.S. military confirmed early Friday. The statement from U.S. Central Command said rescue efforts are still ongoing for the remaining two crew members. The military said the incident involved another aircraft, but was not the result of hostile or friendly fire. The circumstances of the incident are under investigation.
An armed group allied to Iran previously claimed responsibility for the incident.
6:18 am ET March 13, 2026
French soldier killed, President Macron says
Michael Loria
French President Emmanuel Macron announced Thursday evening that the country suffered its first casualty amid the war on Iran.
Chief Warrant Officer Arnaud Frion of the 7th Battalion of Chasseurs Alpins was killed during a strike on troops stationed in Iraq, Macron said. Several French soldiers were wounded. He was from Varces in southeastern France, near Grenoble.
French troops have been stationed in the area since 2015, the French president said. They are part of a U.S.-led coalition aimed at fighting ISIS.
“To his family, to his brothers in arms, I want to express all the affection and solidarity of the Nation,” Macron said in a statement. “Their presence in Iraq is part of the strict framework of the fight against terrorism. The war in Iran cannot justify such attacks.”
6:18 am ET March 13, 2026
Suspect behind Michigan synagogue attack born in Lebanon, DHS confirms
Michael Loria
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security confirmed Thursday evening that the suspect behind an attack on a synagogue in Michigan was born in Lebanon.
The suspect drove his vehicle into Temple Israel, one of the nation’s largest synagogues in suburban Detroit. The head of temple security was injured during the crash, authorities said. According to local police, temple security fatally shot the suspect.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson identified the suspect as Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, a 41-year-old born in Lebanon who became a naturalized U.S. citizen in February 2016.
Ghazali entered the U.S. at the Detroit Metropolitan International Airport in 2011 on an immigrant visa as the spouse of a U.S. citizen.
Local authorities declined to get into Ghazali’s specific motives but said, “obviously, what happens around the world sometimes affects us.”
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