Iran curbs sports teams’ travel to 'hostile' countries

Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal says Americans should be “shocked and fearful” at the prospect of US troops being deployed to Iran, describing it as one of the most dangerous military scenarios in recent history.

Speaking to reporters at the Capitol, the Senate Armed Services Committee member said thousands of troops are already heading to the region.

“Americans should be shocked and fearful by the prospect of American sons and daughters on the ground in Iran, in the most risky and perilous situation in recent military history,” he added.

Blumenthal also criticized the administration’s handling of the conflict, saying classified briefings have left lawmakers confused.

“I come away from them knowing less than when I went into them, because they are so confusing, muddled and chaotic in the presentation of objectives of this war,” he said.

US President Donald Trump appears to be leaning toward ordering a major ground operation against Iran, The Times of Israel reported, citing an official from a country mediating between Washington and Tehran.

US recognizes that Tehran is not likely to agree to the concessions presented in Washington’s 15-point plan and has dispatched thousands of troops to the region in order to capture Iran's Kharg Island on Trump’s orders, the report said citing the official.

The report cited a second official from a mediating country as warning that while US forces may be able to capture the island, holding it would likely require significantly more troops and a longer campaign than the four-to-six week timeframe publicly suggested by Washington.

Israel’s military said on Thursday its air force carried out around 20 waves of strikes over the past 24 hours targeting Iranian military infrastructure in western Iran.

The military said the strikes hit dozens of sites including locations in Kermanshah and Dezful.

It said about 70 munitions were used to target facilities involved in the storage and launch of ballistic missiles as well as air defense systems.

Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the country will continue fighting until it breaks what he described as the cycle of “war–ceasefire–war.”

In a post on his X account addressed to the “heroic nation of Iran,” Ghalibaf said public mobilization and the sacrifices of Iran’s armed forces over the past 25 nights had created conditions for what he called a “historic victory.”

“No one can issue ultimatums to Iran or the Iranian people,” he wrote.

Ghalibaf added that Iran’s forces would not lose the opportunity created by the war and would press on until “complete victory” and the end of the cycle of “war–ceasefire–war.”

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused US soldiers of fleeing military bases in Gulf Cooperation Council countries and taking shelter in civilian locations.

“From the outset of this war, U.S. soldiers fled military bases in GCC to hide in hotels and offices,” Araghchi wrote on X.

He alleged that the move amounts to using Gulf civilians as “human shields.”

“Hotels in the U.S. deny bookings to officers who may endanger customers,” he wrote. “GCC hotels should do the same.”