February 19, 2026

CNN and CBS: US Ready to Strike Iran in Coming Days. Trump Has Not Made a Final Decision

Photo: Sepahnews handout / EPA. The US is ready to strike Iran as early as Saturday, February 21, but White House head Donald Trump has not yet made a final decision. This was reported by CBS News sources. Discussions are ongoing at the White House regarding possible strikes on Iran. Officials are weighing the risks of escalation, as well as the political and military consequences of abandoning the operation, the channel's interlocutors said. By Saturday, the Pentagon will temporarily withdraw some personnel from Middle Eastern countries, mainly to Europe and the US. According to one of the CBS News sources, the movement of people and resources before a possible attack is standard practice. This does not necessarily mean that the final decision has already been made. CNN interlocutors also reported that the US is ready to strike Iran this coming weekend. According to them, a meeting was held at the White House on February 18 regarding the situation in the Islamic Republic. Trump, it is claimed, was informed about the progress of negotiations with Tehran. Whether the US president will decide to strike before the weekend is unclear, CNN sources noted. "He is spending a lot of time thinking about this," said one of the channel's interlocutors. Photo: Sepahnews handout / EPA. A US military operation against Iran will begin in the coming weeks, Axios sources said. According to them, Israel will also participate in it. The campaign will last several weeks and will be more like a full-scale war than a targeted operation in Venezuela, the publication's interlocutors claim. Also, according to them, the operation will be larger than Israel's 12-day war in June 2025, in which the US joined. Targets for American strikes could include Iranian short- and medium-range missiles, nuclear facilities, and infrastructure related to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, experts told The New York Times. Security agencies and emergency services in Israel have been placed on high alert for war due to a possible US strike on Iran, Ynet reported, citing officials. According to The Wall Street Journal, the US is transferring F-35 and F-22 fighters, an aircraft carrier with strike aircraft and electronic warfare assets, as well as command and control aircraft to the Middle East. Thus, the American contingent in the region will be strengthened to its maximum since the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the publication noted. According to sources, such forces will allow the US to conduct a prolonged operation against Iran, not limited to a single strike.