Donald Trump, flanked by Secretary of State Marco Rubio (L) and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in a White House press appearance, March 26, 2026
EA on RTE’s PrimeTime: US-Israel War on Iran — Mapping the Trump Camp’s Next Step
EA on France 24 and Pakistan TV: US-Israel War — Trump’s Deception About “Talks” With Iran
EA-Times Radio VideoCast: Trump’s Corruption and the US-Israel War on Iran
UPDATES: US-Israel War, Day 27 — Iran Rejects Trump’s 15-Point “Plan”
UPDATE 0702 GMT:
Germany’s Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul says of US-Iran contacts, “Based on my information, there have been indirect contacts, and preparations have been made to meet directly. That would be very soon in Pakistan, apparently.”
UPDATE 0659 GMT:
Drones have struck Kuwait’s Shuwaikh port, causing material damage.
No injuries are reported.
UPDATE 0652 GMT:
The UAE has reportedly told other countries that it would participate in a multi-national naval operation to take control of the Strait of Hormuz from Iran.
The Emirates told the US and other western states, “according to three people familiar with the situation”. Two said Abu Dhabi would deploy its navy.
The UAE is the only country which has publicly backed the Trump Administration’s call for an international naval military intervention.
An EA correspondent notes that Emirates leader Mohammad bin Zayed is pressing the US to seize three Iranian islands in the Strait: Abu Musa, Greater Tunb, and Lesser Tunb.
Iran claimed the islands, pushing back the UAE, in 1971.
One official said the UAE is working on a UN Security Council resolution with Bahrain to provide any future naval force with a mandate.
ORIGINAL ENTRY: Donald Trump has wobbled again in the US-Israel War on Iran, retreating by another 10 days in his threat to attack Iran’s energy infrastructure.
Trump issued the statement on social media on Thursday. Without any evidence, Trump claimed that the request for the extension came from Tehran and that alleged US-Iran talks are going “very well”.
He assailed the “fake news media” for reporting that there is no basis for his assertions.
The reality TV star extended his “deadline” by five days on Monday, amid surging oil prices and falling stock markets because of his threat of “obliteration” of Iran’s power plants.
Oil prices were again rising and markets slumping after their brief rally after Trump’s declaration on Monday. Asian markets opened lower on Friday, with South Korean shares down more than 3% and Japan’s Nikkei on track for a fourth straight weekly decline.
Brent oil had dropped below $100 per barrel on Monday. On Friday morning, it was slightly down at $108.
The Iranian regime has been in contact with the Trump camp with messages through intermediaries. However, it has loudly rejected the Trump camp’s 15-point ultimatum, including Tehran’s permanent shutdown of its nuclear program, strict limits on its ballistic missiles, and breaking of ties with its allies in the Middle East.
The regime again rebuffed Trump’s “extension”. Drones were fired on the Americans’ Sultan Amir military base in Saudi Arabia. Iranian missiles targeted Israel throughout the day, including Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Meanwhile, Trump persisted in his unsupported declarations. He told Fox TV, “I gave them a 10-day period, they asked for seven.”
Then he maintained, “In a certain sense, we have already won.”
