Mixed messaging from the White House comes about three weeks into the conflict which launched on Feb. 28.

Trump had promised the war would be swift.

On Friday evening, March 20, he said the country is "very close to meeting our objectives,"
including "never allowing Iran to get even close to Nuclear Capability."

But it remains unclear what exactly the White House needs to "complete its mission"
-- and whether that will involve deploying to Iran some of the thousands of U.S. soldiers the Pentagon has mustered. 
Thousands have been killed in the war.
Among them are 13 American soldiers
and scores of Iranian children killed in an apparent U.S. strike on a school.
Israel has also launched a campaign in Lebanon, followed strikes from inside that country by Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy group.
Millions of people between Lebanon and Iran have had to flee their homes, according to the United Nations.

https://www.usatoday.com/live-story/news/world/2026/03/21/iran-war-trump-marines-live-updates/89249519007/?link_source=ta_bluesky_link&taid=69bec7a3b2c4a20001d5e97d&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=bluesky