Explosions were heard in the Iranian capital, Tehran, as Israel launched a preemptive strike. Israel is under a state of emergency, as Iran retaliated Friday night with missile attacks.

The United States is closer to a potential major military confrontation than we have ever have been in the Trump era. But discerning where President Donald Trump’s head is at is proving a very difficult exercise.

President Trump spent the first months of his term holding back Israel’s push for an assault on Iran’s nuclear program. With the war underway, his posture has gyrated as he weighs sending in the U.S.

Washington was not involved in Israel’s attack on Iran late Thursday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stressed as he warned Tehran not to target American interests in the Middle East.

Shapiro served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East until January—charged with, among other things, considering scenarios in which tensions between Israel and Iran escalated into all-out war and preparing U.

Former Vice President Mike Pence on Sunday said that the United States “needs to be prepared” to help Israel destroy the Iranian nuclear program. “If Israel needs our help to ensure

Israel said it has launched a series of strikes against Iran that included dozens of military targets, including the country's nuclear program, according to the Israel Defense Forces. Defense Minister Israel Katz described the strikes as "preemptive" and declared a state of emergency.