Iran…Trump War…Evening …3/28/2026…Hegseth set for ‘Boot’s on the Ground’?

Airstrikes in Tehran damaged residential areas and civilian facilities on Saturday, including a prestigious university, according to Iranian media and aid groups. Israel and the Persian Gulf nations reported missile and drone attacks from Iran. Israel continued its offensive in Lebanon.

While there were no reports of casualties in the Houthis’ ballistic missile attack on Israel, the group, which controls much of Yemen, could further rattle global markets. During the war in Gaza, the Houthis disrupted international shipping by menacing vessels in the Red Sea. Yahya Saree, a Houthi military spokesman, said that the attacks from Yemen would continue “until the aggression ends.”

The 2,500 Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit who have been dispatched by Mr. Trump to the Middle East are part of the U.S.S. Tripoli amphibious ready group, accompanied by 2,500 sailors, U.S. military officials said. The officials would not say precisely where the Marines were for operational security reasons.

Usually based in Okinawa, Japan, the Marines are expected to be part of Mr. Trump’s effort to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which Iranian forces have mostly closed. Though the Iranian Navy has been largely crippled by the U.S. and Israeli bombing campaign, Iran can still deploy fast boats with mines or explosives from the strait’s rugged coastline or small islands.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday the United States did not need ground troops to achieve its goals in Iran and predicted the war would be over within weeks, not months.

But Mr. Trump has not ruled out using Marines or special forces. The Iranians’ ability to close the strait gives Tehran leverage over world oil markets, and the war has driven the price of oil up, shaking stock markets.

Here’s what else we’re covering:

• Americans injured: A U.S. official said on Saturday that around two dozen U.S. service members had been wounded in an earlier Iranian strike on a military base in Saudi Arabia. The attack on the Prince Sultan Air Base seriously injured two of the soldiers and damaged two military planes, according to U.S. officials. It was one of the most serious breaches of U.S. defenses since the war began in late February.

• Lebanese journalists killed: An Israeli strike in southern Lebanon on Saturday killed two prominent Lebanese television journalists and a cameraman, according to their news organizations and Lebanese officials. The attack, which Israel said was targeting a reporter it accused of being a Hezbollah operative, was condemned by the country’s president and rights groups, and it raised questions about the scope of Israel’s targets. Read more ›

• Israeli strikes: The Israeli military said Saturday that it had begun a new round of bombardment in the Iranian capital, Tehran. Israel also reported more waves of incoming Iranian missiles, which killed at least one person in Tel Aviv, according to Israel’s emergency service.

• Iranian attacks: Drones struck Kuwait International Airport, damaging its radar, and the key port of Salalah in Oman. Both Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates said its forces were intercepting drones and missiles from Iran. Saudi Arabia’s defense ministry said its forces had intercepted drones and a missile, without saying where they had come from.

• Industrial targets: The U.S.-Israeli coalition bombarded Iran’s industrial infrastructure on Friday, with attacks on two major steel production complexes that are vital to the country’s economy. American and Israeli officials have vowed to target the country’s military industrial base to prevent it from quickly rearming after the war. Israel’s military also said it had attacked nuclear sites in central Iran. Read more ›

• Food supply: The war’s effects on fertilizer supplies are worsening by the day, and price increases for farmers are threatening to lead to food insecurity in some parts of the world. Read more ›

• Death tolls: The Human Rights Activists News Agency has reported that more than 1,492 civilians have been killed in Iran, out of more than 3,300 total deaths. More than 1,110 people in Lebanon have been killed, the health ministry there said on Thursday. More than 50 people have been killed in Gulf countries, while in Israel at least 16 were killed in Iranian attacks, officials said. The American death toll stands at 13 service members….

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ISW…Iran Update Special Report, March 28, 2026

1.  The Houthis conducted a ballistic missile attack and a drone and cruise missile attack targeting southern Israel on March 27 and 28, marking the group’s first involvement in the war. The Houthis’ decision, as of now, to participate in the war by conducting drone and missile attacks against Israel instead of attacking international shipping suggests that the Houthis may be pursuing a relatively cautious approach designed to avoid an immediate escalation with the United States and Israel.
2. Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei’s Telegram channel published an infographic about the regime’s long‑standing concept of a “resistance economy” on March 28. The publication of this type of infographic is disconnected from the present economic and social realities, particularly amid the ongoing military conflict. The publication of this infographic may also reflect an effort to portray Mojtaba as an active leader amid reports that he is seriously wounded.
3. Iran and Russia have held “very active” discussions in March about transferring a limited shipment of “upgraded” Russian drones to Iran, according to US and European officials speaking to the Associated Press. This report follows recent Western media reports that Russia is providing Shahed drones to Iran.
4. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on March 28 that Ukraine and Qatar signed a 10-year defense agreement that includes developing technologies, air defenses, counter-drone measures, military training, experience sharing, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence (AI), and control systems.
5. The combined force continued to strike Iranian defense industrial sites, including Iran’s Marine Industries Organization (MIO) and Parchin Military Complex in Tehran City and the Iran Marine Industrial Company (SADRA) in Bushehr Province.

Note….

Iran rocket and drone attack’s HAS taken out one US Air Force E-3  AWACS and damaged another..There are over 60 of them….