After three weeks of war, the Trump administration has begun initial discussions on the next phase and what peace talks with Iran might look like, a U.S. official and a source with knowledge told U.S. news portal Axios.

Trump said Friday that he was considering "winding down" the war, though U.S. officials said the expectation was there would still be two to three additional weeks of fighting. In the meantime, Trump's advisers want to start laying groundwork for diplomacy.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz warned that the United States and Israel would intensify their strikes on Iran in the coming week starting Sunday.

The United States and Israel struck Iran's Natanz nuclear facility on Saturday, the Islamic republic's atomic energy organization said.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Friday that he was considering "winding down" military operations against Iran, as the United States temporarily eased sanctions on Iranian oil shipments to stem a global supply crisis.

Iran launched a new wave of drone and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia and Israel meanwhile after supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei claimed to have dealt a "dizzying blow" to his country's enemies.

Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday ruled out reaching a ceasefire agreement with Iran, as more Marines headed to the Middle East in a possible sign of a coming ground operation.

The Trump administration is considering plans to occupy or blockade Iran's Kharg Island to pressure Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, four sources with knowledge of the issue told U.S. news portal Axios.

Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

Israel's military said on Friday it had struck Syrian army camps in response to what it called attacks against the Druze community in the southern Sweida province.

Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that he believed the war in Iran could finish sooner than "people think".