Death toll rises as the war in the Middle East intensifies
WASHINGTON (NBC, KYMA) - President Donald Trump says it could take longer than a month to end Operation Epic Fury, though he claims operations to achieve his objectives are ahead of schedule, but the death toll of American service members is growing.
War in the Middle East is intensifying Tuesday morning as the U.S. embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia suffered minor damage after it was struck by drones, but a Saudi official tells NBC News no one was injured.
Now, several U.S. embassies across the region are closing, ordering non-emergency personnel to leave, though thousands of flights are canceled, stranding American travelers.
"All of a sudden we're in the middle of a war zone," said Chris Elliott, an American stranded in Jerusalem.
Americans abroad and at home are wondering how long the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran will last.
"We projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that," President Trump shared.
"This is not Iraq. This is not endless," said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
In a new War Powers notification to Congress, Trump said it's not possible to know the full scope and duration of the operation.
Trump officials are set to brief all of Congress Tuesday as some leading Democrats, who got early briefings, argue Iran did not pose an imminent threat to the U.S.
"There was a threat to Israel...If we equate a threat to Israel as the equivalent of an imminent threat to the United States, then we are in uncharted territory," said Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA).
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration knew Israel was preparing to strike Iran, and the U.S. acted first to prevent a chain reaction.
"There absolutely was an imminent threat. And the imminent threat was that we knew that if Iran was attacked, and we believed they would be attacked, that they would immediately come after us," Secretary Rubio remarked.
With now six American service members confirmed dead as Iran strikes back, the president is vowing to destroy Iran's missile capabilities and navy to ensure they never get a nuclear weapon and can no longer arm terrorists.
Rubio also said the hardest hits against Iran are yet to come.
As a bipartisan group of lawmakers is pushing to force a vote this week to limit the president's war powers without congressional approval.
House Speaker Mike Johnson called that dangerous and predicted the vote would fail.
