TOP STORIES
Trump Warns Iran of ‘Bad Things’ if No Deal Made, Sets Deadline of 10-15 Days | Times of Israel
US President Donald Trump warned Iran on Thursday that it must reach a deal over its nuclear program or “bad things” will happen, and appeared to set a 10-15 day deadline before the US might take action. Amid a massive US military buildup in the Middle East that has fueled fears of a wider war, Trump said negotiations with Iran were going well but insisted Tehran has to reach a “meaningful” agreement.
Trump Weighs Initial Limited Strike to Force Iran into Nuclear Deal | Wall Street Journal
President Trump is weighing an initial limited military strike on Iran to force it to meet his demands for a nuclear deal, a first step that would be designed to pressure Tehran into an agreement but fall short of a full-scale attack that could inspire a major retaliation. The opening assault, which if authorized could come within days, would target a few military or government sites, people familiar with the matter said. If Iran still refused to comply with Trump’s directive to end its nuclear enrichment, the U.S. would respond with a broad campaign against regime facilities—potentially aimed at toppling the Tehran regime.
Trump Appears Ready to Attack Iran as U.S. Strike Force Takes Shape | Washington Post
The Trump administration appears ready to launch an extended military assault on Iran, current and former U.S. officials said, as the Pentagon amasses an immense strike force in the Middle East despite the risks of U.S. combat fatalities and American ensnarement in an extended war. . . . Trump’s top national security advisers met in the Situation Room on Wednesday to discuss the Iran situation, and they were told that the U.S. forces that have been deployed to region will all be in place by mid-March, a U.S. official familiar with the issue said. . . . Regional diplomats initially thought that the Trump administration’s military pressure on Iran was meant to push Tehran to offer greater concessions in those negotiations, according to a European diplomat briefed on the Iran talks. But after the most recent talks concluded Tuesday in Geneva, diplomats now believe that Iran is not prepared to budge from its “core positions,” including its right to enrich uranium. “The Iranians were planning to drown them in technicalities and delay substance,” the diplomat said. “While a more traditional approach would have built on the dialogue, . . . Trump does not have the patience.”
UANI IN THE NEWS
UANI Policy Director Jason M. Brodsky Discusses Iran | LiveNOW with Fox News
According to Axios the Trump administration is closer to a significant military escalation in the Middle East, specifically with Iran. Early reports this week indicate the conflict could begin by this weekend. Jason Brodsky with United Against Nuclear Iran weighs in.
MILITARY/INTELLIGENCE MATTERS & PROXY WARS
The ‘Incredibly Significant’ US Military Forces Surrounding Iran | Financial Times
The US has amassed a vast military force in the Middle East as President Donald Trump warned Iran to reach a deal within a “maximum” of 15 days or “bad things will happen.” The American build-up is enough to sustain a weeks-long air campaign, and its sheer scale and swiftness make an attack appear more likely, according to former Pentagon officials and national security experts. The Middle East deployments have echoes of the US’s military movements in the lead-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq and are larger than the recent American build-up in the Caribbean ahead of the capture of strongman president Nicolás Maduro.
Trump’s Iran Ultimatum Sets Stage for Strike During IAEA Meeting | Bloomberg
US President Donald Trump’s warning to Iran—that it has just 10 to 15 days to avert potential military action—suggests matters could come to a head when the United Nations watchdog next meets to decide whether to further censure the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s board is scheduled to convene in 10 days, on March 2, for five days of meetings in Vienna. Diplomats are expected to weigh a new resolution of censure, that could refer Iran to the UN Security Council for further action. That sets up a potential repeat of the timetable that played out in June, when Israel began strikes within 24 hours of the IAEA board’s decision to censure Iran over its lack of cooperation with monitors. The finding was cited by US officials, who at the time suggested it provided the legal justification for military interdiction.
UK Has Not Given US Permission to Use RAF Bases for Iran Strikes | BBC News
The British government has not given permission for the US to use UK military bases to support potential US strikes on Iran, the BBC understands. The US has in the past used RAF Fairford, in Gloucestershire, and the UK overseas territory of Diego Garcia, in the Indian Ocean, to carry out strikes in the Middle East region.
The massive accumulation of US military assets in the Middle East is not merely a show of force but a signal that the United States has the capacity to dismantle the Iranian regime’s power structure in a matter of hours, according to Vice Admiral (Ret.) Bob Harward, former deputy commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM).
Israel Readying for Hypothetical Iranian First Strike—Report | Times of Israel
Israel is preparing for a hypothetical scenario in which Iran may attack Israel first amid the ongoing tensions between Tehran and the United States, the Kan public broadcaster reports. . . . Kan does . . . cite Israeli security sources as saying that if Iran attacks Israel in response to an American attack, Israel will also launch strikes on Iran—something that Israeli leaders have repeatedly publicly said.
“We are prepared for any scenario,” [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu] said at an IDF cadets graduation ceremony. “And one thing is certain—if the ayatollahs make a mistake and attack us, they will face a response they can’t even imagine.” Netanyahu said Israel is “operating side by side with our major ally, the United States” to face the Iranian threat.
Russia Urges Restraint as US Builds Up Military Assets Near Iran | Reuters
Russia said on Thursday that it was seeing an unprecedented escalation of tension around Iran as the United States moved military assets into the Middle East, and the Kremlin urged both Tehran and “other parties” to exercise prudence and restraint.
Three Iranians in Silicon Valley Face US Trade Secrets Charges | Iran International
Three Iranians working as engineers in Silicon Valley were charged with stealing sensitive trade secrets from leading US technology firms and transferring confidential data to unauthorized locations, including Iran, US authorities said on Thursday.
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iranians Grieve Defiantly for Thousands Killed in Last Month’s Crackdown | Associated Press
Standing on her balcony in the Iranian capital, Tehran, the teacher shouted out into the darkness, “Death to the dictator!” and “Death to the murderer, Khamenei!” on a recent night, joining the slogans coming from windows and rooftops around her relatively affluent neighborhood. A few voices in the darkness responded with slogans in support of Iran’s 47-year-old Islamic Republic. “Shut up! Choke on it!” her neighbors shouted back, drowning out the pro-government voices, the teacher recounted to The Associated Press . . .
Iran Jail Terms for Christians Top 280 Years as Arrests Nearly Doubled | Iran International
Iranian courts sentenced Christians to more than 280 years in prison in 2025, according to a joint report by four rights groups, in what advocates describe as a widening use of national security laws to suppress religious dissent. The findings reveal a sharp escalation in repression as authorities increasingly label those who leave Islam as “security threats” and “Mossad mercenaries” following regional conflicts.
Iran Steps Up Crackdown on Women Footballers After Protest Resignations | Iran International
Pressure by Iranian authorities on women footballers has intensified following resignations from the national team in protest at the quashing of nationwide protests with deadly force, people familiar with the matter told Iran International. Security forces have used threats against players’ families and relatives, contract deductions and exclusion from team training to silence top-league players, sources said. Authorities have also sought to pressure athletes by offering inducements to some individuals to monitor their teammates, while female players have been threatened with judicial action and long prison sentences if they express support for the protests, the sources added. Football federation officials have meanwhile warned players that reacting publicly to the killings could result in multi-year bans from professional football activity, according to the sources.
NUCLEAR PROGRAM
“Most of the [nuclear] material that Iran had accumulated up until June of last year, despite the [U.S.] bombings and the attacks, is still there, in large quantities, where it was at the time of the strikes,” [International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael] Grossi said. “Some of it may be less accessible, but the material is still there. From a non-proliferation standpoint, the material remains. That is why there is so much interest—I would say urgency—in reaching an agreement that would prevent new military action in the region.”
Iran’s atomic energy chief Mohammad Eslami says no country can deprive the Islamic Republic of its right to nuclear enrichment, after US President Donald Trump again hinted at military action following the second round of US-Iran talks over Tehran’s nuclear program in Geneva.
SANCTIONS, SHIPPING, BUSINESS RISKS & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
Denmark Detains Shadowy Boxship Linked to Iran Questioning Registration | Maritime Executive
The Danish Maritime Authority confirmed to local media that it has placed a detention order on a shadowy containership until the vessel can prove its registry and certifications. The vessel was sanctioned in July 2025 by the United States as part of a network including more than 50 vessels that the U.S. said were part of the vast shipping empire controlled by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani, the son of Ali Shamkhani, a top political advisor to the Supreme Leader of Iran.
HOSTAGES
British Couple Held in Iran Is Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison, Family Says | New York Times
A British couple who were detained in Iran last year while on a motorcycle tour around the world have been sentenced to 10 years in prison on espionage charges, the couple’s family said on Thursday. The couple, Craig and Lindsay Foreman, were arrested by Iranian authorities in January 2025. Iranian state media later announced that they were accused of “security crimes,” charges that the couple’s relatives and the British government have rejected.
UNITED NATIONS & IRAN
Terror Sponsor Iran Gets UN Leadership Overseeing Charter Principles | Fox News
Iran has been elected vice-chair of the United Nations Charter Committee, a body tasked with examining and strengthening the principles of the U.N. Charter, drawing criticism from Israel and renewed scrutiny of the organization’s selection processes. . . . Pressed on whether the [U.N.] secretary-general would condemn Iran’s election, the spokesperson added, “It is not for him to condemn the election of any member state to a body. He will condemn and has when member states, through their actions, he feels, violate the charter or human rights.”