Iran's strikes damaged over 26 US bases with billions in losses

An Associated Press analysis has determined that Iranian strikes on more than two dozen U.S. military installations in the Middle East caused billions of dollars in damage. The AP independently verified the extent of the destruction using satellite imagery from multiple providers. The analysis also drew on briefings from four regional officials with firsthand knowledge of the events. The findings indicate that the attacks were systematic rather than random, targeting specific infrastructure before moving to other structures.

Through August, Iran and Iranian-backed militias claimed responsibility for more than 115 drone or missile strikes. These attacks damaged or destroyed structures at 26 military bases and other sites containing U.S. equipment. The AP analysis found a distinct pattern in the sequence of the strikes. Early-warning systems were the initial focus of the Iranian forces. Once those defensive systems were targeted, the attacks shifted to aircraft and buildings.

In related diplomatic developments, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei stated that any threat from the U.S. or Israel should face an immediate response. He described this response as having no geographic limits, according to the official IRNA news agency. Iranian Foreign Minister said on Saturday that a proposal had been reached to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within two days. This announcement came as talks with mediators continued in an effort to reduce the threat of all-out war.

Elsewhere in the region, a third consecutive weekend of protests swept across France. Hundreds of thousands of mostly young demonstrators took to the streets on Saturday to voice concerns over living costs and education. The French government estimated that 320,000 people participated nationwide. This turnout was lower than the previous two weekends of demonstrations but still represented a large number of participants. Approximately 70,000 police and gendarmes were deployed across the country to manage the crowds.

In the United States, federal judge Darrin Gayles in Miami dismissed President Donald Trump's multibillion-dollar lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal and media mogul Rupert Murdoch. The judge ruled with prejudice, stating that the president did not prove the defendants made defamatory statements with actual malice. The lawsuit concerned a story published last year about a sexually suggestive letter that bore Trump's name and was included in a 2003 album compiled for Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday.

In Alaska, the state's attorney general's office urged a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed at the direction of the president. The suit sought to stop the certification of a possible Democratic win in the state's pivotal U.S. Senate race. The filing described the lawsuit as meritless and argued there was no reason for the court to entertain it any longer. U.S. District Court Judge Sharon L. Gleason had set a deadline of Saturday for arguments regarding the dismissal.

In Texas, Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico conducted final weekend campaign blitzes in a tossup U.S. Senate race. Paxton, the state attorney general, warned voters against restoring Democratic control of Capitol Hill. He told supporters in Fort Worth that the election would go down to the wire. Talarico, a state lawmaker, was scheduled to rally support in Houston later in the day. The race has become a measure of voter frustration with Trump's leadership.