With next week’s United Nations General Assembly approaching, President Donald Trump said Iran appears willing to reach an agreement. His comments come as he prepares for talks with Gulf leaders aimed at shaping a postwar plan—and declared that the conflict “will end soon.”
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Trump said he hoped the United States was nearing the end of its confrontation with Iran.
During a recent visit to North Carolina, a reporter asked Trump which stage of the conflict he believed the two sides had reached.
“Well, hopefully we’re toward the end of the war,” Trump replied. “They want to make a deal. We’ll see how that works out.”
When asked whether third-party mediators were facilitating discussions with Tehran, Trump dismissed the suggestion of backchannel negotiations, saying the United States was communicating with Iranian officials “directly.”
The comments came as footage obtained by ABC News showed extensive damage at US military bases across the Middle East following Iranian strikes.
The newly released images offer a stark view of the disruption and destruction confronting American forces in the region.
Photographs showed shattered buildings and damaged aircraft at three major US military sites in Kuwait, as well as at a Saudi base holding critical assets. Some equipment was reportedly evacuated at short notice to protect it from further attacks.
OBTAINED BY ABC: Service personnel have reportedly provided photographs of destruction at US bases to ABC News and CBS News. Damage from an Iranian attack is visible at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. The images emerged as President Donald Trump said Iran appeared open to a deal ahead of next week’s UN General Assembly, while talks with Gulf leaders are expected to address a possible postwar strategy.
Wreckage believed to include US military transport aircraft and helicopters was found at a remote landing site in Iran. The images reportedly show aircraft destroyed during a US special forces operation to recover crew members from a downed fighter jet. Iranian authorities said their air defenses had brought down multiple aircraft during the mission.
OBTAINED BY ABC: Service personnel have reportedly shared photographs of destruction at US bases with ABC News and CBS News. Damage from an Iranian attack can be seen at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia. Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he hoped the United States was nearing the end of its conflict with Iran.
US Central Command reported attacks on American bases in eight countries—Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman and Jordan—according to the Defense Department inspector general’s first report to Congress on Operation Epic Fury.
The inspector general estimated equipment losses at up to $3.7 billion, including nearly 60 aircraft, CBS News reported.
Although the administration has repeatedly highlighted the effects of US attacks on Iran, it has provided considerably less detail about damage to American troops and military facilities.
Trump has defended the offensive as necessary to stop Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, while insisting that Iranian forces have already sustained devastating losses.
“Iran is officially a Failed Nation,” Trump wrote on Truth Social last month. He claimed the country had “no Navy” and “no Air Force,” and described its leadership as being in “total disarray.”
The photographs, however, present a broader picture of the destruction, revealing the extent of the damage suffered by US forces as well.
Other US facilities across the region have also sustained significant damage.
CBS News reported last week that Iranian strikes on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan damaged several American aircraft, including an A-10 Thunderbolt whose wing was destroyed.
President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have repeatedly stressed the strength of the US campaign and its defensive systems. Newly disclosed photographs and Pentagon figures, however, indicate that American forces have suffered substantial damage.
Women stand near the building of the destroyed Shajareh Tayyebeh primary school in Minab in Iran’s Hormozgan province on August 10
Personnel in protective suits inspect a heavily damaged aircraft, its radar section ripped apart in what appears to be a targeted strike on critical systems last March
Around eight F-15 fighter jets suffered lighter damage and were subsequently returned to service, according to people with direct knowledge of the incident.
Prince Sultan Air Base itself has previously come under heavy attack.
Meantime, regional security remains on high alert: US naval forces, led by the USS George Washington in the Arabian Sea, are maintaining patrols near the Strait of Hormuz while advancing Houthi troops along Yemen’s Red Sea coast spark new fears over global supply lines.
The Daily Mail reached out to the Pentagon for comment on this story. They did not immediately respond.
