Acting US Navy Secretary Hung Cao confirmed on the record that Iranian strikes 'blew the…

A rare on-record US admission reshaped the picture of the war's toll on American forces today. Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao told the Epoch Times that Iranian strikes caused extensive damage to Naval Support Activity Bahrain, home to the US Fifth Fleet: 'They blew the hell out of Bahrain,' he said, adding that the damage left the USS Abraham Lincoln's crew 'no place for them to pull in' and that a task force is examining whether the base needs to be rebuilt after the conflict. Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi seized on the remarks, writing on X: 'We appreciate the candor... Our powerful Armed Forces did indeed blow the hell out of the 5th Fleet HQ in Bahrain, as well as other bases supporting US aggression.' Separately, the Iran-backed Houthi advance along Yemen's Red Sea coast reached a new milestone: Yemeni government forces withdrew from Perim Island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait after Houthi forces entered the nearby port of Dhubab, giving the Iran-aligned group effective control of both sides of the strait's chokepoint. Reuters reported the IRGC directly guided this Houthi offensive. Oil markets registered the cumulative toll: Brent crude reached roughly $108/bbl Thursday and US diesel prices climbed to nearly $6/gallon. Trump, asked about the war's impact on November's midterms, said he doesn't regret the decision to go to war and would make the same call again. On the diplomatic track, Arab foreign ministers plan to meet Iran's FM in Salalah, Oman Monday to discuss a temporary Hormuz shipping arrangement, and Iran's Araghchi spoke with Pakistan's army chief about reviving de-escalation talks.