Waves of US strikes on Iran hit week mark

Welcome to The Hill's Defense & NatSec newsletter{beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security Your feedback matters to us. Take our brief newsletter survey to help us improve the newsletters you read every day. The Big Story Waves of US strikes on Iran hits week mark The U.S. military for the seventh consecutive day launched a wave of strikes against Iran on Friday in what U.S. officials described as efforts to degrade Tehran’s military capabilities. Morteza Akhoundi, Getty Images ProvidedThe strikes began at 3 p.m. EDT, U.S. Central Command said, with the military widening its strikes against Iran in recent days, attacking targets across the nation. The U.S. military struck the southern coast of Iran on Thursday, including hitting bridges around Bandar Abbas, a key port city. Early Friday morning, the U.S. military hit bridges and energy sites in Iran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responded with attacks on U.S. bases in the Gulf region, including in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. The IRGC also said it attacked a U.S. special operations command center at the al-Tanf garrison military base in Syria — an assertion that U.S. Central Command disputed on Friday morning. Iran also has fired back against Persian Gulf allies in the region, firing drones and missiles at Qatar, Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait. The U.S. Navy has continued to enforce the naval blockade, which resumed Tuesday, with U.S. Marines from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit boarding sanctioned oil tanker M/T Wen Yao on Thursday. President Trump said Thursday night that the U.S. is “winning” big in Iran and that the American public will see the “fruits of that labor very, very shortly.” Read the full report at thehill.com. Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & National Security newsletter, I’m Ellen Mitchell — your guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. Did someone forward you this newsletter? Subscribe here. Essential Reads How policy will affect defense and national security now and inthe future: Appeals court sides with Pentagon on escort policy for journalists A panel of three federal judges ruled that the Pentagon’s policy requiring journalists in the building to have government escorts will stand, overturning a lower court judge’s decision. In a Thursday evening order, two of the three judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit panel said Department of Defense officials “are likely to succeed on their argument” that the escort requirement was not an illegal retaliation … Full Story US targets Iranian bridges, energy sites in latest wave of strikes The U.S. military hit bridges and energy sites in Iran in its latest round of strikes against the Middle Eastern country early Friday morning. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) responded with attacks on U.S. bases in the Gulf region, including in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. The IRGC also said it attacked a U.S. special operations command center at the al-Tanf garrison military base in Syria — an assertion … Full Story Acting Navy secretary on Blue Angels flyover at Florida beach: ‘No problem’ The Navy’s top civilian official is brushing off criticism over an unusually low-altitude Blue Angels flyover at Florida’s Pensacola Beach this week, saying there will be no punishments for the incident. 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Ed Markey (D-Mass.) late Thursday called on Congress to impeach President Trump after the president claimed during a primetime address that forces … Read more 5 takeaways from Trump’s big elections speech President Trump delivered an address to the nation on Thursday evening in which he sought to paint the state of U.S. election security as indefensible. … Read more Opinions in The Hill Op-eds related to defense & national security submitted to The Hill: As Putin loses confidence in his military, Ukraine presses harderIsrael must stay out of the latest Iran-US fighting The National Guard cannot serve two masters You’re all caught up. Check out The Hill's Defense page for the latest coverage. Like this newsletter? Take a moment to view all our topical emails here 📩 Privacy Policy | Manage Subscriptions | Unsubscribe 400 N. 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