The U.S. military continued bolster its forces in the Middle East throughout the weekend, with assessments that their deployment will be completed in the coming days ahead of a possible strike on Iran.
U.S. President Donald Trump warned on Friday aboard the Air Force One that “We have a lot of ships going that direction just in case … and we’ll see what happens. We have a big force going toward Iran; I’d rather not see anything happen, but we’re watching them very closely.”
He reiterated that his threats prevented the execution of 837 people whom Iranian authorities arrested during the nationwide protests that shook the Islamic Republic earlier in January.
“They would have been dead, every one of them would’ve been hung. This is like from a thousand years ago. … Mostly young men were going to be hung on Thursday, and I said if you hang those people you’re going to be hit harder than you’ve ever been hit. It will make what we did to your Iran nuclear look like peanuts,” the president said in reference to the U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June.
Meanwhile, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has moved into an underground shelter in Tehran, Iran International, an opposition-affiliated outlet, reported on Saturday.
It cited two sources close to the government as saying that the underground facility is a “fortified site with interconnected tunnels.”
Khamenei’s third son, Masoud Khamenei, has assumed the roles of the supreme leader’s office, they added.
The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and three accompanying destroyers are on their way to Iran in the Indian Ocean.
The carrier strike group is expected to join three littoral combat ships, which ported in Bahrain on Friday, The Independent reported.
Two additional U.S. Navy destroyers entered the Persian Gulf.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said on social media last week: “A U.S. Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 494th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron lands at a base in the Middle East” on June 18.
“The F-15’s presence enhances combat readiness and promotes regional security and stability,” it added.
Two submarines were also deployed to the region, as well as anti-ballistic missiles air defense systems, according to Israel’s Channel 12 broadcaster.
Dozens of refueling and reconnaissance aircraft are present and the U.S. forces have hundreds of cruise missiles, the report said.
The last time the U.S. moved military assets in such scale to the region was before June’s attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites.
Meanwhile, CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper was expected to touch down in Israel on Saturday, according to Israel’s public broadcaster Kan.
Israel’s defense establishment assesses that the buildup of the U.S. military in the region could be a platform for carrying out an attack or as leverage for reaching a diplomatic agreement with Iran to abandon its nuclear project, the report said.
An Israeli official who was not cited by name told Kan that as of Saturday there was no operational coordination regarding Iran.
Israeli security forces have intensified their preparations for a possible U.S. strike on the Islamic Republic, which could lead to an Iranian response against the Jewish state. A scenario being discussed is a “miscalculation” by the Iranians that will prompt them to preemptively attack Israel, Channel 12 reported.
Also on Saturday, the U.S. Department of the Treasury announced further sanctions against Tehran’s assets, targeting nine “shadow fleet” vessels.
The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control imposed sanctions on the ships “and their respective owners or management firms that have collectively transported hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of Iranian oil and petroleum products to foreign markets,” the Treasury said in a statement.
Iran denies spared executions
Iran’s top prosecutor on Friday rejected Trump’s comments that the hanging of more than 800 protesters was canceled, The Washington Post reported.
“This claim is completely false; no such number exists, nor has the judiciary made any such decision,” Mohammad Movahedi Azad, the prosecutor-general of Iran, said in comments delivered by the judiciary’s Mizan news agency, according to the Post.
“We have a separation of powers, the responsibilities of each institution are clearly defined, and we do not, under any circumstances, take instructions from foreign powers,” Movahedi Azad added.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a White House official doubled down on the president’s statement that executions were called off, the Post reported.
“All options are on the table if the regime executes protesters,” as Trump is observing the situation closely, the source was cited as saying.
Iranian judiciary officials have described some of those detained as “mohareb”—or “enemies of God,” a charge that carries the death penalty.
The Islamic Republic cracked down on demonstrators on Jan. 8-9 after an internet blackout was imposed in the country by the theocratic dictatorship. Regime forces fired live ammunition at protesters, killing thousands of people.
Sources inside and outside the country believe the death toll could be as high as 20,000, CBS News reported on Jan. 13.
An Iranian physician living in the U.S. identified as Hassan Jaludari, who speaks Hebrew, spoke with Kan and said, based on conversations with acquaintances inside the country, that Iranian security forces entered hospitals and shot wounded protesters. Medical teams moreover received instructions not to treat protesters who were admitted to hospitals, he added.
Maj. Gen. Mohammad Pakpour, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, declared on Thursday that it is “more ready than ever, finger on the trigger,” according to the Associated Press.
He warned the United States and Israel “to avoid any miscalculation.”
Reuters cited on Friday a senior Iranian official speaking on condition of anonymity as saying that Tehran will treat any attack “as an all-out war against us.”
The U.S. “military buildup—we hope it is not intended for real confrontation—but our military is ready for the worst-case scenario. This is why everything is on high alert in Iran,” he was quoted as saying. “We will respond in the hardest way possible to settle this,” he added.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Friday accused Israel of seeking an opportunity to start a war with Iran, Reuters reported.
“I hope [U.S. military forces] find a different path, but the reality is that Israel, in particular, is looking for an opportunity to strike Iran,” Fidan said in a televised interview.
Internet monitor NetBlocks tweeted on Saturday that the internet shutdown in Iran continues into its third week, despite a brief restoration.
The head of Iran’s Telecommunications Infrastructure Company said that online connectivity should be restored by Saturday or Sunday, according to Iran International.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-affiliated Fars News reported on Saturday that Iran’s Supreme National Security Council approved reconnecting the country to the internet.
From left, Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and U.S. presidential representative Jared Kushner at an Israeli Cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on Oct. 9, 2025. Credit: GPO.
(Jan. 25, 2026 / JNS)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Saturday with a United States delegation, including Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and the architect of the White House’s Gaza initiative, Jared Kushner, to discuss the implementation of Trump’s 20-point plan to end the Gaza Conflict.
“The discussion was constructive and positive, with both sides aligned on next steps and the importance of continued cooperation on all matters critical to the region,” Witkoff posted to X on Saturday. Also joining the discussion were White House advisor Josh Gruenbaum and Senior Advisor Aryeh Lightstone.
The U.S. delegation reportedly intended to 
