Widening Mideast war, Clintons’ Epstein testimony, midair rescue

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By Mark Garrison

March 03, 2026

By Mark Garrison

March 03, 2026

 
 

In the news today: Trump faces critics who say he needs to explain why he’s sending U.S. troops into war with Iran and what his endgame strategy is; Iranian nuclear sites are hit and Americans flee the Middle East as the conflict widens; and new videos of the Clintons’ testimony about Epstein. Also, a midair rescue and dazzling photos from the endlessly colorful celebration of Holi.

 
President Donald Trump speaks about Iran before a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House, Monday, in Washington.

President Donald Trump speaks about Iran before a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House, Monday, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

WORLD NEWS

Trump pushes back on mounting criticism about his Iran war battle plan

Critics say President Donald Trump hasn’t done enough to explain why it was necessary to start a war with Iran now or to articulate his vision for an endgame to the escalating conflict. Read more.

What to know:

  • The frustration is coming not just from the political left but also from Trump’s “Make America Great Again” base, as the conflict expands, energy prices surge and the death toll in the Middle East rises in a war that the administration suggests may only be in the opening stages.

  • Trump strode back into office last year on an “America First” pledge to keep the U.S. out of the sort of “forever wars” that bogged down some of his recent White House predecessors. Central to his foreign policy outlook dating to his first campaign has been his call to “abandon the failed policy of nation building and regime change.” But now Trump finds himself in a war of his own choosing that’s spurring concern the U.S. could be dragged into another prolonged conflict in the Middle East.

  • The administration has not detailed who it wants to see take control of Iran following the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and dozens of other top leaders. Trump called on the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps to put down their arms. But history suggests that air power alone is unlikely to bring about the kind of regime change that Trump says he wants to see in Iran.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • In Their Words: How Trump and his administration’s statements on Iran evolved and conflicted

  • Trump officials say Israel’s plans helped lead the US into Iran war

  • Democrats’ newfound unity faces a test after US and Israeli strikes on Iran

  • Trump takes unconventional approach to communicating to the public about war in Iran

  • Iran attacks threaten US economy with more uncertainty around inflation, growth
 

WORLD NEWS

Live updates: Iranian strikes hit Lebanon and Saudi Arabia as US and Israel target nuclear facilities

Iran struck the U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia’s capital with a drone attack early Tuesday, as it continued to target areas around the region. Across Tehran, explosions rang out overnight as the U.S. and Israel pounded Iran with airstrikes. Read more.

What to know:

  • The U.S. military has confirmed six deaths of American service members. All six were Army soldiers in a logistics unit in Kuwait, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

  • The State Department urged U.S. citizens to leave more than a dozen Middle Eastern countries due to safety risks, as have many other countries, though with much of the airspace closed many remain stranded. 

  • The United Nations’ nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, said Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment site had sustained “some recent damage,” though there was “no radiological consequence expected.” Natanz earlier came under attack by the U.S. in the 12-day Iran-Israel war in June.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • FACT FOCUS: Misrepresented images spread after US and Israel strike Iran

  • Iranian drones fly across the Persian Gulf after their pivotal use by Russia in Ukraine

  • WATCH: Hotel parking lot in Dubai turned into shelter amid Iranian strikes

  • What to know about Iran’s Revolutionary Guard

  • How the AP decided to call fighting in the Middle East the ‘Iran war’

  • Photos from inside Iran as strikes boom across the capital

  • Iranian Americans fear for relatives in their homeland as war continues
 

POLITICS

New videos show lawmakers questioning the Clintons about Epstein. They also asked about pizzagate and UFOs

A House committee investigating Jeffrey Epstein labored for six months to question former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, but once they finally had a chance to sit down with some of the highest-ranked officials to ever be deposed by Congress, the sessions veered off track with a leaked photo, talk of the pizzagate conspiracy theory and questions about disclosing government information on UFOs. Read more.

Why this matters:

  • Videos released Monday by the House Oversight Committee of depositions for both Bill and Hillary Clinton from last week showed how overall the former Democratic president distanced himself from Epstein, even as he said it was important for anyone with information about Epstein’s abuse to come forward. Hillary Clinton repeatedly told the committee she never even recalled meeting Epstein during hours of questioning that at times became heated.

  • Lawmakers are trying to meet demands for a reckoning over Epstein, who killed himself in 2019 in New York while facing charges for sex trafficking and abusing underage girls. High-status men around the world have been forced into resignations because of revelations about their relationships with Epstein, but so far there are few signs in the U.S. of serious legal consequences coming.

RELATED COVERAGE ➤

  • WATCH: ‘I’m done’: Hillary Clinton on leaked photo by Lauren Boebert during deposition

  • Supreme Court blocks law against schools outing transgender students to their parents in California

  • Supreme Court preserves only GOP-held congressional district in New York City for 2026 elections

  • Supreme Court could loosen law barring marijuana users from owning guns

  • What to watch in Tuesday’s primaries in multiple states

  • Minnesota sues to block Trump administration’s withholding of Medicaid funds

  • Minnesota launches investigation that could bring charges against federal immigration officers

  • WATCH: 13-year-old girl’s drawings show her view of being held in immigration center

  • White House attributes redness on Trump’s neck to skin cream but doesn’t say what it’s treating

  • In a first as president, Trump says he’ll attend the White House correspondents’ dinner
 

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