Trump says Iran war will end 'soon' with NEW deal on the table... as devastating photos show US bases severely damaged in Middle East

Ahead of next week's UN General Assembly, President Donald Trump indicated that Iran is open to a deal, setting up key talks with Gulf leaders to sketch out a postwar strategy - and saying the war 'will end soon.'Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he hopes that the US is almost finished with Iran.'Well, hopefully we're toward the end of the war,' Trump said in North Carolina on his most recent trip when a reporter inquired what phase of the conflict they currently feel they are in.'They want to make a deal. We'll see how that works out,' Trump said. Asked whether third–party mediators were brokering discussions with Tehran, Trump rejected the idea of backchannel diplomacy, emphasizing that the US is communicating with Iranian officials 'directly.'This all comes as Iranian strikes have left US Middle East bases heavily damaged, according to footage obtained by ABC News.These dramatic photos have exposed the chaotic fallout American forces are facing.Images show smashed buildings and a damaged aircraft across three key US military hubs in Kuwait and a Saudi base housing vital assets – some of which had to be hastily evacuated to save them from incoming danger. OBTAINED BY ABC: Service personnel have reportedly shared the photos of the destruction at US bases with ABC News and CBS News. Damage is visible to at Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, from an Iranian attack. Ahead of next week's UN General Assembly, President Donald Trump indicated that Iran is open to a deal, setting up key talks with Gulf leaders to sketch out a postwar strategy Wreckage believed to be from US military transport aircraft and helicopters related at a remote landing site in Iran. Images show destroyed aircraft reportedly used during a US special forces rescue operation to recover crew members from a downed fighter jet. Iranian authorities claimed their air defenses shot down multiple aircraft during the operation OBTAINED BY ABC: Service personnel have reportedly shared the photos of the destruction at US bases with ABC News and CBS News. Damage is visible to at Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudi Arabia, from an Iranian attack. Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he hopes that the US is almost finished with IranUS Central Command reported strikes against American bases in eight countries - Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman and Jordan, according to the Defense Department inspector general's first report to Congress on Operation Epic Fury.The inspector general put equipment losses at as much as $3.7 billion, including nearly 60 aircraft, according to CBS News.While the administration has consistently spotlighted the impact of US strikes against Iran, it has offered far less transparency regarding the damage sustained by American personnel and installations. Defending the ongoing offensive, Trump has framed the operation as a mandatory step to prevent Tehran from securing a nuclear weapon, maintaining that Iranian forces have already suffered overwhelming losses. 'Iran is officially a Failed Nation,' Trump wrote on Truth Social last month, claiming the country had 'no Navy' and 'no Air Force,' while describing its leadership as being in 'total disarray.'But the photographs show a different story of the damage inflicted on the other side of the conflict.US facilities other places in the region have also seen major damage.CBS News reported last week that Iranian strikes against Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan damaged multiple American aircraft, including an A-10 Thunderbolt that lost a wing. Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth have repeatedly emphasized the effectiveness of the US campaign and its defenses, even as the newly disclosed images and Pentagon figures reveal substantial damage has been inflicted on American forces Women stand near the building of the destroyed Shajareh Tayyebeh primary school in Minab in Iran's Hormozgan province on August 10 Personnel in protective suits inspect a heavily damaged aircraft, its radar section ripped apart in what appears to be a targeted strike on critical systems last MarchAround eight F-15 fighter jets suffered lighter damage and were subsequently returned to service, according to people with direct knowledge of the incident.Prince Sultan Air Base itself has previously come under heavy attack.Meantime, regional security remains on high alert: US naval forces, led by the USS George Washington in the Arabian Sea, are maintaining patrols near the Strait of Hormuz while advancing Houthi troops along Yemen's Red Sea coast spark new fears over global supply lines.The Daily Mail reached out to the Pentagon for comment on this story. They did not immediately respond.