President Trump softens talk of war

A day after warning of possible U.S. military action, Mr. Trump said on Monday that he would “like to avoid” a conflict with Iran following the weekend’s attack on Saudi oil facilities.

Mr. Trump said it appeared that Tehran was behind the attack, which hobbled Saudi Arabia’s oil output, but he also said of Iranian officials, “I know they want to make a deal.”

Saudi officials said that Iranian weapons had been used but didn’t directly blame Iran or call for immediate retaliation.

Go deeper: The Times analyzed satellite photographs released by the Trump administration to determine what they show.

Another angle: Mr. Trump promised to wait for Saudi Arabia to tell him “under what terms we would proceed,” a deference that “reinforced the longstanding criticism that the energy-rich kingdom buys American support,” our correspondents write.