The United States has paused military strikes against Iran while pursuing diplomatic efforts aimed at reducing tensions, a U.S. official told CNN on Friday, after a night in which no new American attacks were reported.
The official said the United States deliberately carried out strikes and then halted them in an effort to avoid further escalation and "let diplomacy work." Meanwhile, the official said Washington continues to maintain a "target list" as leverage over Tehran. Other officials cited by CNN said the U.S. military remains prepared to conduct additional strikes, but that the administration has chosen, for now, to allow diplomacy to take the lead.
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An F/A-18E Super Hornet aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln
(Photo: AFP PHOTO / US NAVY / NAVCENT PUBLIC AFFAIRS)
U.S. President Donald Trump remained unusually silent overnight on the confrontation with Iran. He also refrained throughout Thursday from publicly commenting on the renewed escalation, during which the United States carried out strikes on two consecutive nights. As of Friday morning, Trump had not posted about the tensions on his Truth Social account.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Thursday that Trump and Netanyahu had spoken, adding that Trump updated the Israeli leader on U.S. operations in the Persian Gulf.
CNN reported that earlier in the night, aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea, crews armed fighter aircraft and pilots rehearsed missions in preparation for possible strikes. According to the report, the carrier's captain told thousands of crew members that "things were heating up" and urged them to maintain operational readiness, as they routinely do.
Iranian media reported explosions Thursday night, prompting speculation that the United States had launched another round of strikes. U.S. officials denied that American forces had carried out any additional attacks.
The funeral of Ali Khamenei in Mashhad, Iran
(Photo: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
Iranian regime supporters call for Trump's assassination at Khamenei's funeral procession
(Photo: John Moore/Getty Images)
Meanwhile, the weeklong funeral procession for Iran's slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei concluded Friday with his burial at the Imam Reza shrine complex in Mashhad, his hometown. The shrine is one of the holiest sites for Shiite Muslims in Iran and beyond.
Several senior Iranian officials attended the burial ceremony, including Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. Mehdi Nasrallah, the son of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, was also seen at the ceremony.
(Photo: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
(Photo: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)
Mehdi Nasrallah (left) at the funeral of Ali Khamenei
Khamenei's coffin had been taken in large public funeral processions through Tehran, Qom and the Iraqi Shiite holy cities of Najaf and Karbala. During the ceremonies, crowds chanted calls for revenge and demanded Trump's assassination.
The Wall Street Journal reported overnight that Israel shared intelligence with the United States indicating that Iran had planned another attempt to assassinate Trump.
Trump appeared to refer to threats against his life during this week's NATO summit in Ankara, saying Iran wanted "to take out the leader of the United States — me. I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m on every single one of their lists. And so far, I guess I’ve been a bit lucky, but maybe that doesn’t last very long."