IRAN WAR: U.S. halts Iran attacks after days of trading strikes

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The United States has stopped attacking Iran in hopes of easing tension between the two countries and letting diplomacy take over.

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Despite a memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran, the two countries traded airstrikes in the past two days. While the U.S. has halted attacks for now, an official said its military is ready to resume fighting if needed.

Also, Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was buried on Friday at the Imam Reza shrine in the city of Mashhad, after a week-long funeral procession with tens of thousands of Iranians mourning the loss. Khamenei’s successor, his son, Mojtaba Khamenei has yet to make a public appearance since his death.

Here’s the latest on the Iran war on Friday:

Israel shared intel with U.S. on Trump assassination plot

Israel reportedly shared intelligence with the U.S. that Iran had a plan to assassinate President Trump, CNN reported.

A source told the news outlet that the U.S. had picked up some intel recently about possible plans to kill Trump, but the warning from Israel was new and concerned a specific plot. Another source said the Israeli report could’ve been an effort to influence Trump’s decision-making as he decides whether to amp up military action against Iran.

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Washington has long warned that Iran may try to assassinate Trump in retaliation for a 2020 drone strike he ordered, which killed Qasem Soleimani, a top Iranian official.

Israel will remain in Lebanon ‘as long as necessary’

Israeli PM Netanyahu said his country will remain in southern Lebanon “as long as necessary to ensure the security of our communities in the north.”

“If we had not acted at the time we did, and with the intensity with which we did – Iran would have armed itself with nuclear weapons to destroy Israel, that is their plan, and the citizens of Israel would have been in danger of mass death,” Netanyahu said during a pilots’ graduation ceremony on Thursday, per ABC News.

“That is why we embarked on these operations with our American friends – to ward off the threat of immediate annihilation, and also a great danger to the entire Western world,” Netanyahu said.

Trump talks Middle East conflict with Netanyahu

U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Netanyahu’s office stated, per CBS News.

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The Israeli PM’s office said Trump updated Netanyahu about the U.S. moves in the Gulf and also talked about “continued coordination between the countries in various sectors.

Late Iranian Supreme Leader buried

Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was buried early Friday morning at the Imam Reza shrine in the city of Mashhad. Khamenei’s family attended the ceremony, which was private, CNN reported.

Khamenei’s successor, his son, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, hasn’t appeared in public during the funeral procession.

U.S. prepared to attack again if needed, says officials

After days of trading attacks on each other, there are actions taking place behind the scenes in hopes of easing tensions between the United States and Iran, an American official told CNN.

The U.S. has been attacking Iran and then pausing on purpose to avoid escalation and let diplomacy work, the official said, noting Washington is maintaining a target list as leverage.

CNN reported that there were preparations for potential American strikes if needed, but Washington is letting diplomacy take over.

Fighter jets aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln are armed, with pilots practicing drills, staying ready for any potential strikes.

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