JD Vance says Iran conflict has 'clear' objective and will not devolve into another Iraq - Mail

US Vice President JD Vance insisted on Monday that the conflict in Iran will not devolve into another war in Iraq or Afghanistan.

He argued in an interview with Fox News' Jesse Watters that the US's mission in the Middle Eastern country has a 'clear' objective to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Vance's remarks came just hours after a senior official told CNN's Jim Sciutto that the US is preparing for a 'major uptick' in strikes on Iran over the next 24 hours, targeting the country's missile production, drones and naval capabilities.

But before those attacks occur, the US has urged all Americans to leave 15 countries across the Middle East, with the State Department even offering assistance to anyone who was struggling to arrange transportation out of the country as Iran continues to retaliate.

Its military has already killed six American soldiers and striking an American-allied fuel tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards now say the strait is closed and Iran will set fire on any ship which attempts to pass through.

A major oil refinery at Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, was also shuttered on Monday after being hit by a drone as motorists in the UK face warnings of potential 'record prices at the pumps'.

Meanwhile, Qatar shot down two Iranian fighter jets after it was attacked by Tehran today and forced to shut off its gas production following a drone strike.

The Qatari defense ministry announced two Su-24 bombers were brought down, while seven missiles and five drones were also intercepted during several attacks on the Gulf state.

The Daily Mail had all the latest updates of the US-Israel war with Iran

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01:17

JD Vance insists Iran will not become another Iraq or Afghanistan

Vice President JD Vance insisted to Fox News' Jesse Watters on Monday night that the military action in Iran will not be like the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan.

'There's NO WAY Donald Trump is going to allow this country to get into a multiyear conflict with no clear end in sight and no clear objective,' he said.

'He's defined that objective as Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon and has to commit long term to never trying to rebuild a nuclear capability. It's pretty clear, it's pretty simple, and I think that means we're NOT going to get into the problems we had with Iraq and Afghanistan.'

23:17

US prepares for 'major uptick' in attacks on Iran

The US is preparing for a 'major uptick' in attacks on Iran over the next 24 hours, according to CNN anchor Jim Sciutto.

A senior official with knowledge of the Trump administration's plans said the military has assessed that its first round of attacks have successfully weakened Iranian defenses.

The next phase will focus on destroying the country's missile production, drones and naval capabilities, the official said.

The news comes hours after President Donald Trump told CNN: 'We haven't even started hitting them hard. The big wave hasn't even happened. The big one is coming soon.'

06:20

Trump says United States is 'ready to win'

In a late night post to his Truth Social platform on Monday, President Donald Trump touted the US's munition stockpiles - though he said more is still needed.

'The United States Munitions Stockpiles have, at the medium and upper medium grade, never been higher or better,' the president wrote.

'As was stated to me today, we have a virtually unlimited supply of these weapons. Wars can be fought “forever,” and very successfully, using just these supplies (which are better than other countries finest arms!).'

Still, Trump said, 'at the highest end, we have a good supply, but are not where we want to be.'

He then praised himself for rebuilding the military's stockpiles during his first term, and concluded by saying: 'The United States is stocked, and ready to WIN, BIG!!!'

06:05

Hezbollah fires 'swarm of attack drones' on Israel

Hezbollah announced that it has fired 'a swarm of attack drones' at Israel at 5am local time on Tuesday, following a day of intense Israeli bombardment across Lebanon.

The Israeli military later confirmed that it had intercepted two drones that crossed into Israeli territory from the direction of Lebanon.

05:42

US State Department orders nongovernment employees to evacuate embassy in Bahrain

The US State Department has ordered nonemergency government employees and family members to evacuate the embassy in Bahrain as the conflict continues.

The embassy has been struck repeatedly since the Israeli-American attack began.

05:35

UN rules Israeli strike of school is 'grave violation of humanitarian law'

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization ruled on Monday that Israel's strike of a primary school for girls in Iran constitutes a 'grave violation of humanitarian law.'

05:20

Nikki Haley says strike on Iran 'puts Russia and China on notice'

Nikki Haley, the former ambassador to the United Nations, argued on Monday that the US's strike on Iran 'puts Russia and China on Notice.'

'Don't forget what China and Russia are watching right now,' she said on Fox News, noting that the Chinese were importing massive amounts of Iranian oil.

'We saw in the 12-day war, China and Russia didn't step up to help Iran, but in the background they were,' Haley continued. 'Here again, they're condemning it by words, but what's most important is Russia's gonna realize now with President Trump, you better be more serious with him.

'This gives President Trump leverage in negotiating the Russia-Ukraine war,' she argued, 'This also lets China realize "Do you really want to go and attack Taiwan right now?" Because this is the kind of force you would deal with if you even made that attempt.

'So this is more than just the Iranian regime, this is letting all of our adversaries take a second look at the Trump administration, take a step back and say, "OK maybe we need to rethink this right now."'

05:10

CENTCOM says it has destroyed Revolutionary Guard assets in Iran

US Central Command said it has destroyed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' command and control facilities, as well as Iranian air defense capabilities, missile, drone launch sites and military airfields.

'We will continue to take decisive action against imminent threats posed by the Iranian regime,' the military command said in a statement.

04:54

Iran's Foreign Minister hits out at Rubio for remarks about strike on Iran

Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi hit out at US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for his remarks on Monday, claiming he 'admitted what we all knew: US has entered a war of choice on behalf of Israel.'

'There was never any so-called Iranian "threat,"' he wrote.

'Shedding of both American and Iranian blood is thus on Israel Firsters.

'American people deserve better and should take back their country.'

04:24

Trump urged Kurds to join forces: report

President Donald Trump spoke by phone with Kurdish leaders in Iraq on Sunday to discuss the operations in Iran and what may come next, three sources familiar with the discussions told Axios.

The Kurds have thousands of soldiers across the Iran-Iraq border and control strategic areas. Iraq's Kurds also have close ties with Iran's Kurdish minority.

Sources said Trump spoke to leaders from the two main Kurdish factions in Iraq following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's advice. Israel has had close ties with the Kurds in Syria, Iran and Iraq for decades.

'It is the general view, and certainly Netanyahu's view, that the Kurds are going to come out of the woodwork... that they're going to rise up,' one of the unidentified sources said.

The sources also suggested that Netanyahu first advocated for Kurdish involvement at a White House meeting with Trump.

'When he first came over and sat with Trump for hours, you would have thought Netanyahu had it all figured out,' a source said.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to discuss specifics of the report, but said: 'President Trump has been in contact with many allies and partners in the region throughout the past several days.'

Key Updates

US State Department orders nongovernment employees to evacuate embassy in Bahrain

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