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(NEW YORK) — Several developments came out of Washington, D.C., regarding the war with Iran over the weekend as strikes continue across the Middle East and economic impacts are beginning to be felt domestically.  

President Donald Trump and administration officials continued to comment on the timeline of the war, the possibility of a deal with Iran, securing the Strait of Hormuz and the release of oil reserves.

The administration has maintained that the U.S. is decimating Iranian forces and degrading their capabilities, but Iran continues to strike.

On Saturday, Trump said on social media, “We have already destroyed 100% of Iran’s Military capability,” and said the U.S. “will soon get the Hormuz Strait OPEN, SAFE, and FREE.”

Still, the administration has yet to comment on the deployment of Marines to the region, which was announced on Friday, and what their mission could entail.

Trump also faced backlash over the weekend after an affiliated political action committee sent a fundraising email, featuring a photo from the dignified transfer of the first six U.S. service members killed in the Iran war, while offering contributors access to “private national security briefings.”

ABC News has compiled a list of some of the latest developments as the war stretches into its third week.

Timeline

Questions continue to swirl about how long Trump wants the United States to be engaged in this war.

He spent the bulk of last week assuring Americans it would be over soon, hoping to ease market concerns, saying Iran is beaten. But on his way out of Washington Friday night, he refused to comment on how long it would continue. “As long as necessary,” Trump said.

On Sunday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright told ABC News’ Martha Raddatz, “I think that this conflict will certainly come to an end in the next few weeks. Could be sooner than that, but the conflict will come to the end in the next few weeks.”

In an interview with NBC, Wright also acknowledged, “Americans are feeling it [economic pain] right now and will feel it for a few more weeks.” But, he said, in the end, we will have removed the greatest threat to global energy supplies.

Securing the Strait

Officials, including Wright, also struggled over the weekend to explain the plans they had executed in anticipation that Iran would shut down the vital oil shipping lane in the Strait of Hormuz.

On Saturday, Trump called on other countries that depend on that commerce to help secure the strait, naming “China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others.” He also suggested he’s received commitments from some of them, but from whom remains unknown. Democrats, critical of Trump, said last week that this is something that should have been coordinated at the outset.

Later Saturday, President Trump told NBC that he’d secured cooperation. “They’ve not only committed, but they think it’s a great idea,” but he didn’t say which country or countries he was referring to.

And, in that same interview, he said, “We believe we’ll be joined by other countries,” drawing into question whether he actually secured commitments.

ABC News has asked the White House to clarify, and they have not responded.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said of the strait on Friday, “We have been dealing with it, and don’t need to worry about it.”

But, so far, there have been no escorts, and requests from shipping companies have reportedly been denied.  

Pressed on whether Trump has actual commitments from others to help, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said during an interview with CNN, “I’ll leave those conversations to him,” referring to the president.

Wright told ABC News that more work needs to be done before the strait can open and escorts can occur. “Right now, our focus is destroying their military capabilities, including those that are used specifically to threaten the straits. But we need to finish those tasks first, and you will see the straits open again in the not-too-distant future.”

He also did not specify which countries would help.

Trump spoke with the leaders of the U.K. and Canada on Sunday, but there was no mention of any commitment from the foreign leaders.

Trump, meanwhile, has been warning Iran that further disruptions in the strait could result in devastating strikes on the country’s oil infrastructure. He said he’s so far held back during those strikes on Kharg Island, but on Friday warned he would “reconsider” if Iran interfered with the Strait of Hormuz.

On Saturday, he told NBC, “We may hit it a few more times just for fun.”

A deal?

Many experts in Washington believe ultimately, there needs to be another nuclear deal in order for this war to end.

Trump said over the weekend he’s not ready “because the terms aren’t good enough yet.”

“Iran wants to make a deal, and I don’t want to make it because the terms aren’t good enough yet,” Trump reportedly told NBC.

And in a post to his social media platform, he said Iran “wants a deal,” but not one he would accept.

He also raised questions about whether the new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, is alive or not. On Friday, the State Department announced a $10 million reward for information on key Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps leaders, including Khamenei.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told CBS on Sunday, “We don’t see any reason why we should talk with Americans, because we were talking with them when they decided to attack us, and that was for the second time.”

But, in what some interpret as a more positive diplomatic development, Aragachi said Iran has not yet attempted to retrieve its 440 kilograms of highly enriched uranium from “underneath the rubble” of those nuclear sites bombed by the U.S. last June.

If, he said, that material is to be recovered, it would be done under the “supervision of the agency,” a reference to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Earlier Saturday, Reuters reported that Trump had rejected efforts from Middle East allies to begin diplomatic ceasefire negotiations. The White House had not responded to ABC’s requests for comment about the report.

“Nothing is on the table right now. Everything depends on the future,” Araghchi said.

Marines deployed

On Friday, Trump ordered 2,200 Marines aboard three U.S. Navy amphibious ships to the Middle East, two officials confirmed to ABC News.

Trump has yet to comment on this decision, and why it’s necessary if the war, in his words, is “won.”

The Marines are part of a Marine Expeditionary Unit, which means that they are capable of conducting land, amphibious and aviation missions.

It also means there are more than just 2,220 Marines headed there. There are between 2,000 and 2,500 Sailors also on board those ships, providing support.

In all, approximately 5,000 Marines and Sailors are headed to the region.

The Pentagon has not acknowledged the deployment and has not offered any guidance on its mission.

Nevertheless, they are already underway and will take a minimum of 10 days to get there.

Backlash to campaign using photo of war dead

Trump drew backlash from his critics over the weekend after it was confirmed an affiliated political action committee sent a new fundraising email featuring an official White House photo from the dignified transfer of the first six U.S. service members killed in the Iran war, while also offering contributors access to “private national security briefings.”

In the photo, Trump can be seen saluting a flag-draped transfer case containing the remains of one of the six fallen soldiers.

Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on CNN, “If the president is willing to raise campaign funds over the bodies of America’s war dead, he is unfit to be the commander in chief.”

The White House and Never Surrender Inc. have not responded to ABC News’ requests for comment.

Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said he “didn’t see” the email. “I didn’t see it. I mean, somebody puts it up. We have a lot of people working for us, but there’s nobody that’s better to the military than me,” Trump said.

The Pentagon identified the six service members killed when a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq on Thursday.

Three of the Air Force airmen were assigned to the 6th Air Refueling Wing, MacDill Air Force Base in Florida: Maj. John A. Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Alabama; Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington; and Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky

The other three airmen were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Columbus, Ohio: Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Indiana; Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio

The crash, which involved another KC-135 tanker, is still under investigation.

Oil reserves

Oil reserves from emergency stockpiles will start flowing immediately to Asia but won’t be available to the U.S. and Europe until the end of March, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in a new press release Sunday.

Importantly, the IEA did not specify exactly how much oil would start flowing per day — a metric oil analysts are watching to understand what the immediate impact might be on prices. Oil prices have so far not been tamed by the announcement that countries, including the U.S., are tapping their strategic reserves.

The IEA announced the biggest-ever release of oil from reserves — 400 million barrels — from its 32 member countries last week. That includes 172 million barrels from the U.S.

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(NEW YORK) — The first of two storms has passed through the Great Lakes and is now moving through the northern tier of the Northeast, bringing widespread strong winds and snow from the eastern Great Lakes to northern New England.

On Friday, wind gusts greater than 70 mph were reported in Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan and Indiana. Wind alerts remain in place from northeast Ohio and central Pennsylvania up to Upstate New York and the higher elevations of Massachusetts through Saturday morning and afternoon for wind gusts between 45 and 60 mph.

Saturday morning, snow continues across Upstate New York and into northern New England. An additional widespread 1 to 3 inches of snow can be expected from northwest New York to Maine, with some localized areas possibly getting over 3 inches of snow.

Heavier snow and severe weather
The next storm will be a stronger, cross-country storm that has been impacting the Pacific Northwest and northern Rockies since Friday and will sweep into the northern Rockies and Plains Saturday and the Midwest later Saturday into Sunday.

Winter storm warnings stretch from the Idaho Panhandle to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, with some flight agencies cancelling flights ahead of this major winter storm.

Blizzard Warnings have also been issued for parts of South Dakota and southwest Minnesota for snowfall of more than a foot and strong winds up to 60 mph possible, with the National Weather Service warning that travel will likely become impossible late Saturday and Sunday.

By Sunday morning, snow stretches from South Dakota and Nebraska into the Great Lakes.

On the southern side of the powerful system, a line of severe storms will develop from Michigan down to Texas Sunday afternoon into the night.

An “Enhanced” risk (Level 3/5) has already been issued for parts of the Midwest on Sunday, from Indianapolis to just north of Memphis. Widespread damaging wind gusts will be the main threat although a few tornadoes will be possible along with large hail.

Chicago could go from thunderstorms on Sunday night to snow and whiteout conditions on Monday.

On Monday, the major storm will continue to move east. There will still be snow and wind across the Great Lakes and rounds of heavy rain and strong winds moving into the Northeast.

More severe weather will continue across the East Coast on Monday late afternoon into the evening from the Florida Panhandle up to Pennsylvania.

An “Enhanced” risk (level 3 of 5) has been issued for parts of the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland and southern Pennsylvania. This includes Columbia, South Carolina; Raleigh, North Carolina; Richmond, Virginia; Washington, D.C; Baltimore, Maryland; and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

The main threat will be damaging winds, some large hail and a few tornadoes.

By the time this storm passes through, a widespread 3 to 6 inches of snow will be likely from Montana to the northern fringes of Upstate New York. The heaviest snow is expected from northeast South Dakota to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where 10 to 20 inches of snow will be possible, as well as gusty winds that could cause blowing snow and reduced visibility.

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(NEW YORK) — Six service members were killed when their refueling aircraft “went down” in friendly airspace in western Iraq, according to U.S. Central Command.

“All six crew members aboard a U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft that went down in western Iraq are now confirmed deceased. The aircraft was lost while flying over friendly airspace March 12 during Operation Epic Fury,” CENTCOM said Friday.

The KC-135 aircraft went down at approximately 2 p.m. ET on Thursday when two aircraft were involved in “an incident,” CENTCOM said in a brief statement, confirming that “one of the aircraft went down in western Iraq, and the second landed safely.”

Gen. Dan Caine addressed the crashed refueling plane, saying the incident is being treated as an active rescue and recovery mission.

“The incident occurred over friendly territory in western Iraq while the crew was on a combat mission, and again, was not the result, as CENTCOM has said, was not the result of hostile or friendly fire,” Caine said Friday. “We’re still treating this as an active rescue and recovery operation, as CENTCOM announced this morning, four airmen have been recovered, and the Air Force and US Central Command will provide updates as information becomes available.”

The other aircraft involved was also a KC-135 tanker, according to a U.S. official.

The circumstances of the incident are currently under investigation and the identities of the service members who died in the incident are being withheld until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified, officials said.

KC-135 aircraft are not equipped with parachutes and do not have ejection seats, which are primarily in fighter aircraft, officials have told ABC News.

Passengers and crew members of KC-135s instead are trained on how to exit the aircraft when it is on land or on water, officials said.

According to a 2008 Air Force profile of the tanker crews, the move to get rid of parachutes was made because the tankers “seldom have mishaps, and the likelihood a KC-135 crew member would ever need to use a parachute is extremely low.”

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(NORFOLK, Va.) — A person was killed and two others were wounded in a shooting at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, on Thursday.

The school shooting was allegedly committed by a former Army National Guardsman who was convicted of giving material support to ISIS, an FBI official told ABC News.

The gunman opened fire in Constant Hall, an academic building, around 10:43 a.m. and was found dead minutes after officers arrived, Old Dominion University Police Chief Garrett Shelton said during a press briefing.

The suspected gunman was identified as Mohamed Jalloh, who was previously convicted in 2016 of attempting to provide material support to the Islamic militant group.  

Two of the victims were members of the university’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program, according to U.S. Army Cadet Command.

Students in the ROTC class fought the shooter, an Army official told ABC News.

Jalloh, a former member of the Army National Guard, was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2017 and released in December of 2024, according to Bureau of Prisons records. 

He allegedly walked into a room and asked if it was an ROTC class, and when someone answered, “yes,” he shot the instructor several times, according to sources.

When he pleaded guilty in 2016, Jalloh admitted he had communicated with a member of ISIS who was located overseas who introduced him to an individual in the U.S. who was actually an FBI confidential informant.

The ISIS member was believed to be actively plotting an attack and believed Jalloh would assist the informant in carrying it out. During one meeting with the FBI informant, Jalloh was asked about a timeline for an operation and commented that it was better to plan an attack for the month of Ramadan, court records say.

Prosecutors had recommended Jalloh serve 20 years in prison. It’s not immediately clear why he was released before the end of his 11-year sentence, though it is not unusual in the federal prison system for inmates to be released before serving their full term of imprisonment. 

A sophomore named Jennifer told ABC Hampton, Virginia, affiliate WVEC that she was waiting for a midterm exam when she heard a group of people saying, “get out, get out, get out.”

“All of a sudden, we heard a commotion. A lot of people rumbling, starting to get up,” she said. “The guy next to me, we looked at each other, we started running, and that’s when we heard, you know, gunshots.” 

She commended the university’s quick communication through alerts, saying, “I’m very, very proud of how quick the situation was handled.”

Shelton told reporters that the investigation is still ongoing and they were combing through the campus for clues.

“We now have to search every single room in that facility. There were students that we found that were hiding and faculty and staff,” he said.

The police did not say how the gunman died.

FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement that the bureau is treating the shooting as “as an act of terrorism,” and the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force will be working with local police in the investigation.

There’s no longer a threat, the university said, adding that classes are canceled for the rest of the day and Friday.

“Today was a tragic day for the campus of Old Dominion University,” Old Dominion President Brian Hemphill told reporters.

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