National and international media news & headlines compiled by CLG

Trump deploys 5,000 Marines into Hormuz tinderbox as boots on the ground fears grow | 13 March 2026 | Donald Trump has deployed thousands of U.S. Marines to the Strait of Hormuz amid mounting fears that America is set to put troops on the ground as the world’s oil supply is strangled. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth approved a request by U.S. Central Command for the deployment of a Marine expeditionary unit, typically including several warships and 5,000 troops, three officials told the Wall Street Journal. The Japan-based USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship, and its attached Marines are now headed for the Middle East, where they join other servicemen already in the fight, the officials said.

Iran war death toll climbs to 13 after all crew onboard U.S. refueling plane died in crash | 13 March 2026 | All six service members aboard an American refueling aircraft that crashed in Iraq on Thursday have died. U.S. Central Command, which initially confirmed four deaths, said there was no hostile or friendly fire that caused the collision in friendly airspace. It brings the death toll of American troops in the Iran conflict to 13. The second plane involved in the collision landed safely with minor damage to the tip of its tail. After Operation Epic Fury began the weekend of February 28, the U.S. announced that six U.S. troops were killed in Iranian drone strikes on a U.S. facility in Kuwait… A seventh American service member was added to the toll due to injuries the service member sustained from an Iranian attack on a U.S. base in Saudi Arabia.

U.S. military refueling plane goes down in Iraq ‘after mid-air incident with second aircraft’ during Operation Epic Fury as rescue efforts underway | 12 March 2026 | A United States military refueling plane has gone down in western Iraq during the U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran. Rescue efforts are underway, a spokesperson for the U.S. military said Thursday. The aircraft was part of the U.S. military operation against Iran, but the crash was not due to hostile or friendly fire, it said. U.S. Central Command, which oversees the Middle East, said in a statement that two aircraft were involved in the incident. It described the latter as “a loss.” “The incident occurred in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury, and rescue efforts are ongoing,” a spokesperson said. “One of the aircraft went down in western Iraq, and the second landed safely.” A U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity…said the other plane involved also was a KC-135 tanker.

U.S. burning through ‘years’ of munitions in Iran war – FT | 13 March 2026 | The U.S. is rapidly depleting its weapons stockpiles and has “burned through years” of some critical munitions since starting its war against Iran, the Financial Times reported on Friday, citing people familiar with the matter. In a closed‑door briefing on Tuesday, Pentagon officials estimated that the first six days of the U.S. war with Iran have already cost at least 11.3 billion, according to the outlet. The rapid munitions drain has stoked fears over the soaring cost of the war and Washington’s capacity to restock key weapons, including advanced long-range Tomahawk missiles, the FT said. The Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies estimated that U.S. forces fired 168 Tomahawk cruise missile during the first 100 hours of the operation against Iran.

Italy’s Meloni breaks with Trump over Iran war | 12 March 2026 | Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, has criticized the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, branding it part of a dangerous trend “outside international law.” She also condemned a deadly strike on an Iranian school widely attributed to the U.S. Meloni delivered the remarks during an address to the Italian Senate on Wednesday, placing the strikes within what she called an “evident crisis of international law and the collapse of a shared world order.” Meloni also condemned what she called a “massacre of little girls” at a school in Minab in southern Iran, calling for an investigation into a strike that killed at least 170 people, most of them children.

Zelensky considering suspending elections for years – media | 12 March 2026 | Vladimir Zelensky has ordered his advisors to plot out a scenario where elections in Ukraine are suspended and the country commits to years of war, Ukrainskaya Pravda has reported, citing government sources. The tenure of Zelensky and of the Ukrainian parliament has long expired, but the Ukrainian leader has refused to hold elections since early 2024, citing martial law imposed amid the conflict with Russia. The situation has prompted international concerns over the legitimacy of the Ukrainian government, particularly from Moscow, which has repeatedly questioned Zelensky’s authority and suggested he may not be in a position to sign any peace agreement should a deal ultimately be reached.

4 Army drone systems stolen from Kentucky base | 12 March 2026 | Four drone systems were stolen from a Kentucky Army engineer battalion in Kentucky late last year, the Army investigators reported in a social media post this week. The Skydio X10D drone systems were last seen in the 326th Division Engineer Battalion at Fort Campbell on Nov. 21, 2025 the Army Criminal Investigation Division, or CID, said, prompting them to offer a 5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the responsible party. Investigators said the drones were stolen between Nov. 21 and 24, but they did not say when the theft was discovered. Skydio X10D are small unmanned aerial drone systems that can be used by the military for battlefield intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.

Ground stop issued for all three Washington D.C.-area airports after ‘strong chemical smell’ detected | 13 March 2026 | A ground stop was issued for all three major airports serving the Washington, D.C., area on Friday afternoon. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport and Baltimore/Washington International Airport were all affected. Officials later said the disruption was linked to a “strong chemical smell” detected at the Potomac Consolidated Terminal Radar Approach Control facility, commonly known as Potomac TRACON, which oversees air traffic in the region. Because of the issue, the FAA ordered a ground stop that appeared set to remain in place until at least 10pm. In a statement, the agency said flights were temporarily halted at Reagan National (DCA), Dulles (IAD), and Baltimore/Washington International (BWI) due to the odor at the Potomac TRACON facility, which was affecting some air traffic controllers.

ROTC students at Old Dominion subdued and killed ISIS-linked gunman who left 1 dead, 2 wounded after shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ and opened fire | 12 March 2026 | ROTC students at Old Dominion University subdued and killed the National Guardsman turned ISIS [I-CIA-SIS] terrorist who shouted “Allahu Akbar” before he killed one and wounded two at the Virginia school. Voorhees University in South Carolina confirmed the victim who died was Lt. Col. Brandon Shah, the son-in-law of a Voorhees trustee. The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps students showed ‘extreme bravery and courage’ and prevented further loss of life by stopping the suspect, identified as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, FBI spokesperson Dominique Evans said. The ROTC students subdued him and “rendered him no longer alive,” Evans added. The shooting is being investigated as an act of terrorism, FBI Director Kash Patel said in a social media post.

Man who drove vehicle full of explosives through doors at Michigan synagogue synagogue ID’d as Lebanese American granted citizenship under Obama | 12 March 2026 | The man who drove a vehicle full of explosives through a preschool at a Michigan synagogue in an attack Thursday has been identified as a naturalized U.S. citizen from Lebanon, federal officials announced. The wannabe car bomber, who died after smashing through the doors of Temple Israel in West Bloomfield, was ID’d as Ayman Mohamad Ghazali, 41, the Department of Homeland Security told The Post. Ghazali, who is married to a U.S. citizen, entered the U.S. through Detroit in 2011 and became a U.S. citizen himself in 2016 under the Obama administration, according to DHS. The armed driver was found dead inside the car, which was loaded with mortar shells, after the temple’s security opened fire when they plowed through the entrance, police and sources said.

Police respond to active shooter at Michigan synagogue | 12 March 2026 | A gunman has been found dead after ramming Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan, and opening fire on a security guard. The attack prompted a massive local and federal response. Local law enforcement and federal agents descended on the synagogue on Thursday, responding to what FBI Director Kash Patel called an “apparent vehicle ramming and active shooter situation.” The gunman approached a security guard and shots were fired, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said, adding that nobody was hurt except the attacker. The suspect plowed through the front doors of the synagogue before “something ignited” inside his vehicle, filling the house of worship with smoke.

Experts warn of rising tick-borne illness that is more of a threat than Lyme disease | 13 March 2026 | An expansive study of ticks in New York and the diseases they carry determined that the prevalence of a lesser-known blood parasite is rising. Scientists were expecting to find plenty of [Pentagon-created] Lyme disease during their nine-year study trawling Dutchess County, New York forest floors for black-legged ticks. What they did not expect was that another pathogen that often flies under the radar may pose an even greater threat. Babesia microti is a parasite that infects red blood cells, causing babesiosis — a malaria-like illness that can be severe or fatal, especially in older adults and the immunocompromised. According to the new study, it is far more common than previously thought.