According to Axios, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham has urged President Donald J. Trump to follow through with strikes against Iran. The comments were made following the senator's trip to the Middle East where he visited key allies in the region, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Israel. However, Graham also said that select officials within the administration have continued to cautioned restraint and the prioritization of maximum pressure over kinetic actions. Graham said his advice was motivated by the opportunnity "to bring about historic change" in Iran. Graham, who is close to the president, has long held a more hardline view on Iran

Two Ilyushin Il-76TDs with the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations, SUM9105 and SUM912, landed earlier tonight at Sharjah International Airport in the United Arab Emirates, possibly pre-staging for the future evacuation of Russian diplomatic staff and other officials from the Middle East, as tensions in the region continue to rise between Iran and the United States.

Early Saturday, the USS Delaware (SSN-791), a Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine on a routine patrol in the Northern Atlantic, was forced to surface off the coast of Greenland due to an onboard urgent medical emergency involving a Submariner with the U.S. Navy. According to reports from Denmark’s Joint Arctic Command, the Servicemember was airlifted from the submarine by a MH-60R Seahawk assigned to the HDMS Vædderen (F359), a Thetis-class ocean patrol vessel of the Royal Danish Navy, to advanced medical care at a hospital in Nuuk.

Video credit: Joel Andersen

Reports of possible explosions and smoke rising from several points across the Iranian planned city of Parand in the Tehran Province, with power outages also being reported in some areas of Parand.

Additional documentation of smoke rising over Parand in Northern Iran.

Some residents of Parand are reporting that the smoke seen is the result of several brush fires just outside the city, with claims of possible explosions still unverified though posts about the incident continue to be made by “individuals” claiming to be based in Iran.

Ongoing clashes this morning between Iranian security forces and demonstrators at the Khajeh Nasir Toosi University of Technology in Tehran.

Both of the Ilyushin Il-76TDs with the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations which landed earlier this morning at Sharjah International Airport in the United Arab Emirates, have now departed heading southeast over the Arabian Sea.

Large anti-government demonstrations are taking place this morning at the Iran University of Science and Technology in Tehran, as well as several other colleges and universities across Iran, with clashes taking place with local security forces and elements under the Basij.

Students chant “This is the final battle, Pahlavi will return” during anti-government protests this morning at the Ferdowsi University of Mashhad in Northeastern Iran.

Protesters raise the Lion and Sun Flag, representing the Pahlavi Dynasty, over the Sharif University of Technology in the Iranian capital of Tehran.

Pro-government and anti-government demonstrators clash at the Amirkabir University of Technology in Tehran, with additional protests and actions taking place this morning at universities across Iran.

Someone claiming to be a Republican from Virginia named John Barron, a pseudonym previously used by President Trump to talk to reporters, called into C-SPAN on Friday to complain about Democrats and the decision on tariffs by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Washington Post reports that as of 6am ET this morning the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which falls under the Department of Homeland Security, has stopped conducting TSA Pre Check and Global Entry passenger screenings due to the partial government shutdown, as talks of a deal has stalled between Democrats and the White House.

Agents from the U.S. Secret Service and a deputy from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office shot and killed a male in his 20's following a perimeter breach of Mar-A-Lago in West Palm Beach, FL overnight. According to the Secret Service, the male was observed carrying a fuel can and what appeared to be a shotgun. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, USSS and PBSO are investigating.

According to Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, early this morning USSS agents and a PBSO deputy observed a male inside the secure perimeter near the north gate at Mar A Lago. Officers ordered the male to put the items down and the subject put the gas can on the ground and then raised the shotgun to a shooting position, at which time officers fired their weapons and neutralized the threat. No officers were injured and the subject is deceased. President Trump was not in Florida at the time of this incident and the investigation is being handled by the FBI.

In a stunning overtime win over Canada, Team USA Men's Hockey has won the gold medal to close out the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. officials have confirmed that nuclear talks between the two countries will continue on Thursday in Geneva, according to CBS News.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81), currently serving as Air Defense Commander for the Ford Carrier Strike Group, has begun transiting the Strait of Gibraltar into the Mediterranean Sea, joining the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) and other surface vessels who likely already have or will soon begin their journey towards Israel.