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What we know so far
• Critical island hit: President Donald Trump said Friday night the US “totally obliterated every military target” on Kharg Island, which handles roughly 90% of Iran’s crude exports. He threatened to attack the oil infrastructure if Tehran continues blocking ships from traversing the Strait of Hormuz.
• Iran’s threat: Tehran warned it would hit regional oil facilities if its own energy infrastructure was attacked, reported state media. It also reported that no oil infrastructure on Kharg Island was damaged.
• Escorts on the strait: Trump also said he believes US Navy escorts for tankers through the Strait of Hormuz will happen “soon.” Separately, a senior Iranian official told CNN that Tehran is considering allowing some vessels to pass through, provided the cargo is traded in Chinese yuan.
• Marines to region: US officials also told CNN that the Pentagon is deploying a Marine Expeditionary Unit to the Middle East, a rapid response unit.
US orders non-emergency workers and their families to leave Oman
The US Department of State on Friday ordered non-emergency American government employees and their families to leave Oman due to safety risks.
Travelers were told to “reconsider travel to Oman due to risk of armed conflict and terrorism” under a level 3 alert.
A level 4 alert, or “do not travel” advisory, is in place for Oman’s border region with Yemen.
Iranian state media says no oil infrastructure damaged on Kharg Island
Iran’s state-affiliated Fars News Agency said no oil infrastructure was damaged in the US strikes on Kharg Island.
More than 15 explosions were reported on the island, with thick smoke rising after the US targeted army defenses, the Joshen Sea Base, an airport control tower and a helicopter hangar, according to field sources cited by the agency.
US President Donald Trump said Friday night that the US bombed “every military target” on Kharg, a small island which handles roughly 90% of Iran’s crude exports.
Footage released by Trump shows US strikes on Kharg Island
Video posted to Truth Social by President Donald Trump and geolocated by CNN shows US strikes on Kharg Island, including hits on airport facilities.
Large explosions and black smoke are visible throughout the footage, which CNN geolocated by matching frames against satellite imagery.
Iran threatens attacks on oil infrastructure after Kharg Island strike, reports state media
Iran has said any attack on its oil and energy infrastructure will lead to retaliatory strikes on facilities in the region owned by oil companies that have American shares or cooperate with the United States, state media reported, citing Tehran’s Khatam al-Anbiya military command headquarters.
The statement on Saturday morning local time came after President Donald Trump announced the US had struck military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island, which handles the majority of its crude exports.
He also threatened to attack the island’s oil infrastructure if Iran continues blocking ships from traversing the Strait of Hormuz.
US strike on Iran's Kharg Island raises stakes in war, says observer
The United States’ strike on Iran’s Kharg Island, a critical crude export terminal, has escalated the stakes in the war and could ultimately send oil prices “out of control,” a retired army official told CNN.
“It means that we have raised the stakes in this war considerably. It’s gone simply from a ‘take out the military, take out the regime’ but now we’re trying to take out the economic lifeblood of this country, potentially,” former US Army brigadier general Mark Kimmitt said.
Kimmitt said the US is holding the island “hostage” to ensure that Iran allows ships through the Strait of Hormuz, whose closure has already sent crude oil prices soaring.
However, if that oil infrastructure is targeted, Kimmitt said “it is clear that Iran is going to attack the rest of the infrastructure in the Middle East.”
“And at that point, the prices of oil will just go out of control,” he added.
Kharg Island is a five-mile stretch of land off the Iranian coast that handles roughly 90% of the country’s crude exports. It had seemingly been left untouched during the first two weeks of the war with Iran.
President Donald Trump said Friday night the US “totally obliterated every military target” on Kharg Island and threatened to attack the island’s oil infrastructure if Iran continues blocking ships from traversing the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf had earlier warned that the country would “abandon all restraint” if there is any US aggression against Iranian islands across the Persian Gulf.
This post has been updated with additional information.
Trump says US has "totally obliterated every military target" on Iran's Kharg Island
President Donald Trump said tonight the United States bombed “every military target” on Iran’s Kharg Island and threatened to attack the island’s oil infrastructure if Iran continues blocking ships from traversing the Strait of Hormuz.
Kharg Island is a five-mile stretch of land off the Iranian coast that handles roughly 90% of the country’s crude exports. It had seemingly been left untouched during the first two weeks of the war with Iran.
A US official confirmed to CNN the US military has executed a “large scale strike” on Kharg Island. The official did not disclose whether all military targets there were destroyed, as Trump claimed.
CNN has reached out to US Central Command for more information.
Background: Trump grew irritated with Fox Radio host Brian Kilmeade in an interview that aired this morning for asking whether the US would go after Kharg Island, calling the question “foolish.”
“I can’t answer a question like that. … You shouldn’t be even asking it. It’s one of so many different things. It’s not high on the list, but it’s one of so many different things, and I can change my mind in seconds,” Trump said.
Experts have argued that attempting to capture or attack Kharg Island would require a significant number of ground troops — something the Trump administration has so far been reluctant to call in.
This post has been updated with additional details.
CNN’s Alayna Treene and Zachary Cohen contributed reporting.
Trump says US and Israeli objectives in Iran "might be a little different"
President Donald Trump on Friday said the US and Israeli objectives in Iran “might be a little different,” as the US-Israel war with Iran enters its third week.
“Well, I think they might be a little different, I guess, they’re a different country than we are. But he will tell you there’s never been a power like the power of the United States,” Trump told reporters before boarding Air Force One.
Asked by reporters if he speaks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu daily, the president replied, “I speak to him a lot.”
Trump’s comments come as Israel says it continues to strike Iran into Friday night local time, with reported targets including Iranian security checkpoints in Tehran, government buildings and military weapon storage sites.
Trump says US Navy escorts will happen in Strait of Hormuz “soon”
President Donald Trump told reporters tonight that he believes US Navy escorts for oil tankers through the critical Strait of Hormuz will happen “soon.”
“It’ll happen soon,” the president said when asked.
The president added, “Today, we’ve had some very, very big hits.”
Asked how long he believes the war with Iran will last, the president told reporters, “It’ll be as long as it’s necessary.”
The president also told reporters he has talked to Chinese leader Xi Jinping about the war — as Trump is expected to head to China later this month.
CNN’s Isa Soares spoke today with former U.S. Navy intelligence official Malcolm Nance about the escalating crisis in the Strait of Hormuz.
Israel vows to continue Iran strikes as oil anxiety grows. What you might have missed today
Israel says it continues to strike Iran into Friday night local time as the war’s death toll rises.
US-Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 1,300 people, the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations said Wednesday. Over 2,000 people — including civilians and military personnel — have been killed in the region so far, according to CNN estimates.
Here are more of today’s headlines:
Iran mulls over strait traffic: Iran is considering allowing a limited number of oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, as long as the oil cargo is traded in Chinese yuan, a senior Iranian official tells CNN.
$10 million reward: The US government is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information on key Iranian leaders, including the new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
Oil prices reach higher: Global oil prices settled at the highest level today since July 2022 as anxiety about the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz continued across global markets.
Family torn apart: An Israeli strike killed nine family members, including five children, in south Lebanon. CNN’s Isobel Yeung visited the site of destruction:
CNN's Isobel Yeung visited the site of a strike on a yoghurt factory in Irkay, Southern Lebanon. The area was struck overnight by Israel, who issued an evacuation order Thursday night. The IDF say they were targeting Hezbollah infrastructure. Nine people were killed in the strike, including 5 children.
US sends more personnel: The Pentagon is deploying a rapid response unit typically comprised of around 2,500 Marines and sailors, three officials familiar with the matter told CNN.
Trilateral talks: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said the US sought to postpone the next round of trilateral talks aiming to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, citing the war in the Middle East.
Israeli strikes spike pollution: CNN found Israeli strikes at fuel facilities across Tehran last weekend spiked pollution levels, ignited fires and caused oil spills, which raised questions and sparked criticism by environmental experts and health officials.
Vance in North Carolina: Vice President JD Vance dodged a question during a speech about what he said to President Donald Trump about the Iran war, citing confidentiality and implying he could go to prison if he discussed it. He also told reporters Khamenei is “hurt,” but it’s unclear if the United States is responsible.
CNN’s Dana Karni, Max Saltman, Sophie Tanno, Catherine Nicholls, Frederik Pleitgen, David Goldman, Jennifer Hansler, Joseph Ataman, Isobel Yeung, Brice Laine, Sara Dadouch, John Towfighi, Natasha Bertrand, Katie Polglase, Pallabi Munsi, Billy Stockwell and Kit Maher contributed to this report.
Top Iranian officials attend rally in Tehran near site of military strikes
Top Iranian officials including the country’s president and judiciary chief attended a rally in Tehran on Friday, near which military strikes took place.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani, Iran’s police chief Ahmad-Reza Radan and senior cleric Ayatollah Alireza Arafi were all in attendance.
Larijani is among the Iranian officials the US is offering a $10 million reward for information on.
Iranian state media said a woman was killed during the march and several explosions were reported in the vicinity of the pro-Palestinian rally.
In one video, an explosion is heard as Iran’s judiciary chief, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i, speaks at the rally.
‘We will stand till last breath, till last minute,” he told Iranian state media as a crowd of people surrounded him. After the explosion was heard, the camera then shows smoke billowing nearby.
Iranian cluster munitions exploded at several locations in Tel Aviv, say Israeli officials
We reported earlier that falling debris from an Iranian missile had caused fires in two locations near Tel Aviv. An Israeli police spokesperson said earlier that “interception debris” was responsible for one of the blazes.
But in an update, multiple Israeli officials have said that those fires – along with others in central Israel – were caused by Iranian cluster munitions.
“During the barrage in the past hour, a cluster munition exploded at several locations in the city,” said Raz Kinstlich, the mayor of Rishon LeZion, one of the stricken locations.
No injuries have been reported, he said, urging residents not to approach or touch any fragments they might find on the ground. “These fragments may be unexploded cluster munitions and could pose a danger to your lives,” he stressed.
Meanwhile, Gili Elhadad, a police spokesman, also said that officers were responding to “several impact sites” from a cluster missile. “We had several locations – seven in total – where explosions from that cluster munitions occurred,” he said.
Elhadad said there had been damage to vehicles, but no casualties, and that a bomb disposal unit was working at a site to disable unexploded ordnance.
Cluster munitions have warheads that burst and scatter bomblets over a wide area. Whereas ballistic missiles are often successfully intercepted by Israel’s long-range interceptors, the bomblets dispersed by cluster munitions can pose a thornier challenge for Israel’s air defenses.
Source: Iran mulls conditions for allowing oil through Strait of Hormuz
Iran is considering allowing a limited number of oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, provided that the oil cargo is traded in Chinese yuan, a senior Iranian official tells CNN.
The potential move comes as the Islamic Republic is working on a new plan to manage the flow of oil tankers through the Strait, the source added.
International oil is almost entirely traded in dollars, apart from sanctioned Russian oil, which is traded in roubles or yuan.
China has attempted to make inroads for the past several years to buy oil in yuan, particularly in Saudi Arabia. But the dollar remains the world’s reserve currency, and the yuan is not broadly accepted on the global marketplace.
Market anxieties about the strait - a significant artery for the world’s energy - have pushed oil prices to their highest point since July 2022, the summer after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The United Nations warned on Friday that restrictions on the flow of ships through the strait will have an “immense impact” on humanitarian efforts as the war continues.
Global oil prices settle at highest level since July 2022
Oil prices moved slightly higher Friday as anxiety about the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz continued to be the premier focus for global markets.
Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, rose 2.67% Friday to settle at $103.14 per barrel, its highest level since July 2022. US crude oil rose 3.11% to settle at $98.71 per barrel, also its highest level since July 2022.
Oil prices have climbed as nerves about the Strait of Hormuz have outweighed efforts by the International Energy Agency and the United States to ease price concerns.
The IEA on Wednesday agreed to a historic release of oil reserves, and the United States on Thursday issued a temporary waiver for countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil.
Nonetheless, Brent and US crude gained 11.3% and 8.6%, respectively, this week, building on enormous gains from the week prior.
All told, Brent is up 41.5% since the war began. US crude oil has surged 47%.
Note: Oil prices continue to trade until later this afternoon, but the 2:30 p.m. ET ‘settle’ price marks the price for tracking daily changes. After trading ends later this afternoon, oil will reopen for trading at 6 p.m. ET on Sunday.
Vance says Iran's new supreme leader "hurt" but unclear if US behind it
Vice President JD Vance said Friday that Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei is “hurt,” but it’s unclear if the United States is responsible.
“Well, it’s not totally clear actually. I mean, it’s obviously a very chaotic environment over there,” Vance told reporters with him in North Carolina, noting how both the United States and Israel are striking multiple targets.
“We know that he’s hurt; we don’t know exactly how bad, but we know that he’s hurt,” he said.
In an interview airing earlier today, President Donald Trump told Fox Radio’s “The Brian Kilmeade Show” that he believes Khamenei is “damaged” but “probably alive in some form.”
While Khamenei offered a message through Iranian state media Thursday, he didn’t appear on video or audio. CNN previously reported that Khamenei suffered a fractured foot and minor injuries on the first day of the war.
CNN Investigates: Tehran toxic air calls proportionality of Israeli strikes into question
A CNN analysis of satellite imagery and air quality data shows Israeli strikes at fuel facilities across Tehran last weekend spiked pollution levels, ignited fires and caused oil spills, leading experts to call into question the proportionality of the military’s actions under international law amid criticism from environmental experts and health officials.
Imagery shows how attacks on a depot in southern Tehran resulted in multiple fuel tanks and a large quantity of spilled oil burning for days, causing toxic, black smoke to spread 50 kilometers (30 miles).
CNN's analysis of satellite imagery and air quality data shows Israeli strikes ignited fires and caused oil spills at multiple fuel depots across the Iranian capital, calling into question the proportionality of the actions under international law amid a growing chorus of criticism from environmental experts and health officials. CNN’s Katie Polglase reports.
Other images show blazes and spills at Shahran depot in west Tehran – a main provider of fuel to residents – and Aqdasiyeh warehouse in the northeast. Geolocated footage shows further attacks on a depot in Alborz, west of Tehran.
The Israeli military accepted responsibility for the strikes but said the facilities were used by “military forces of the Iranian terrorist regime,” which provides fuel to “various consumers, including military entities in Iran.”
Legal expert Craig Jones, a senior lecturer at England’s Newcastle University, told CNN this justification was problematic and said it would likely not meet the threshold of having a “direct military advantage.”
Various air monitoring platforms showed a spike in pollution around the same time as the strikes. These levels decrease as the pollution settles or is carried by wind, but the risks don’t subside, experts said. Spilled oil can also seep into the soil and contaminate water supplies.
CNN asked both US Central Command and Israel Defense Forces (IDF) about these strikes and their proportionality. The US referred our questions to the IDF. The IDF said the strikes were “deepening the damage” to Iran’s military infrastructure and said it would “continue to operate with determination” to “remove threats to… Israel.”
Iran has responded by targeting oil facilities in the Persian Gulf.
CNN’s Thomas Bordeaux and Brandon Miller contributed to this reporting.
Israel targets Iran in new strikes as death toll on the ground mounts
Israel says it continues to strike Iran going into Friday night as the death toll from the ongoing war continues to rise.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the targets ranged from Iranian security checkpoints in Tehran to weapon storage facilities in western and central Iran, along with various Iranian government offices in the capital.
Earlier Friday, an Israeli strike on a target near a pro-Palestinian protest in Tehran killed one woman, according to Iranian state media.
US and Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 1,300 people, the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations said on Wednesday.
Other sources, however, report far higher figures. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency estimates that at least 1,858 deaths, including civilians and military personnel. Iran’s government has not updated its official tally in over a week.
Vance dodges question about his advice to Trump on Iran: "I don’t want to go to prison"
Vice President JD Vance dodged a question today about what he’s said to President Donald Trump about the Iran war, saying conversations about the strike were classified and implying he could go to prison if he discussed them.
Asked what he initially advised Trump as the president weighed military options in Iran, Vance replied that those discussions occurred in a classified space and he would not reveal them to the public.
“I hate to disappoint you, but I’m not going to show up here and in front of God and everybody else tell you exactly what I said in that classified room, partially because I don’t want to go to prison, and partially because I think it’s important for the president of the United States to be able to talk to his advisers without those advisers running their mouth to the American media,” Vance said during a speech on affordability at Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
Notably, Trump didn’t seem to have any issue with saying that his vice president expressed reservations about the war, telling reporters on Monday: “He was, I would say, philosophically a little bit different than me. I think he was maybe less enthusiastic about going, but he was quite enthusiastic. But I felt it was something we had to do.” At the same time, Trump said that they “get along very well” on the issue.
CNN has previously reported that Vance was initially skeptical of the strikes. But when it became apparent that Trump intended to move forward, he advocated for Trump to attack quickly and decisively.
Vance, who is the first Marine Corps veteran to serve as vice president, has openly criticized past administrations for sending Americans troops into prolonged conflicts without a clear mission.
US sending rapid response Marine unit to the Middle East
The Pentagon is deploying a Marine Expeditionary Unit to the Middle East, a rapid response unit typically comprised of around 2,500 Marines and sailors, three officials familiar with the matter told CNN.
It’s not yet clear what the MEU will be used for or where exactly it will be deployed. But these units have traditionally been used for missions like large-scale evacuations and amphibious operations that require ship-to-shore movements, including raids and assaults. They also have a ground and aviation combat component and some units are trained for special operations.
Their presence gives commanders additional options for a range of contingencies, one of the sources said.
While Trump administration officials have said there are no current plans for ground troops in the country, they have also refused to rule it out.
The MEU deployment was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
US government offers up to $10M reward for information on Iranian leaders
The US government is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information on key Iranian leaders, including the new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
The bounty, posted by the State Department’s Rewards for Justice Program, comes as the US and Israeli military campaign against Iran continues and after Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top Iranian officials were killed.
They are also seeking information on four unnamed and unpictured IRGC officials – Secretary of Defense Council, Advisor to the Supreme Leader, Military Office Chief in the Supreme Leader Office, and the IRGC Commander.
“These individuals command and direct various elements of the IRGC, which plans, organizes, and executes terrorism around the world,” the notice said.
“Since its founding in 1979, the IRGC has gained a substantial role in executing Iran’s foreign policy. The group now wields control over vast segments of Iran’s economy and is influential in Iranian domestic politics.”
In a similar bounty notice posted on X, the department adds that information on the leaders could make the tipster “eligible for relocation,” in addition to the reward.
