White House Says Trump Using Preventative Skin Treatment for Neck Rash

US President Donald Trump looks on during a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House on March 2, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
US President Donald Trump looks on during a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House on March 2, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
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White House Says Trump Using Preventative Skin Treatment for Neck Rash

US President Donald Trump looks on during a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House on March 2, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)
US President Donald Trump looks on during a Medal of Honor ceremony in the East Room of the White House on March 2, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP)

US President Donald Trump is using a preventative treatment for a red rash on his neck, according to his physician, but the White House declined on Wednesday to share further details about the condition.

A red, blotchy rash was visible on the right side of Trump's neck just above the collar line in photographs from his appearance at a Medal ⁠of Honor ceremony ⁠on Monday.

In a statement after the event, Dr. Sean Barbabella, the White House physician, said Trump was using a common cream as "a preventative skin treatment."

"The President is using this treatment for one week, and the redness is expected to last for a few ⁠weeks," Barbabella said.

Asked on Wednesday about why the treatment was necessary, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters she had no additional information to share beyond the details provided in the physician's statement.

Trump's health, at age 79, has been more of a focus in his second term, as bruises on his hands and swelling in his legs have been visible at times.

In January, Trump attributed the hand bruising to his frequent use ⁠of ⁠aspirin, and the White House said the president hit his hand on a table when traveling abroad.

Last July, after the president's ankles appeared swollen, the White House physician said an ultrasound on the president's legs "revealed chronic venous insufficiency, a benign and common condition, particularly in individuals over the age of 70."

As he took office for a second term last year, Trump was the oldest US president ever inaugurated, and he frequently compares his health to former Democratic President Joe Biden.



Trump Renews Netanyahu Pardon Call, Saying Only Iran Should be Troubling Him

FILE - President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
FILE - President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
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Trump Renews Netanyahu Pardon Call, Saying Only Iran Should be Troubling Him

FILE - President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
FILE - President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a news conference at Mar-a-Lago, Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

US President Donald Trump on Thursday called again on Israel's president to grant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a pardon for corruption charges, saying the premier should have nothing on his mind but the war with Iran.

Trump, referring to Netanyahu by his nickname, said in an interview with Israel's N12 television news: "President Herzog must give Bibi a pardon today. I don't want there to be anything troubling Bibi other than the war with Iran ... Herzog is a disgrace ... he promised ⁠me five times to ⁠give Bibi a pardon."

President Isaac Herzog's office said in response that while Israel is at war, he is not dealing with the matter of Netanyahu's pardon request, Reuters reported.

Herzog added that he deeply respects Trump's contribution to Israel's security and his position on ⁠Iran but that Israel is a sovereign state that abides by the rule of law.

"The president will examine the request according to the law, the good of the state, his conscience and free of any internal or external pressure," the statement from Herzog's office said.

03 March 2026, Israel, Palmachim Airbase: Israeli PrimeMinister Benjamin Netanyahu (C) visits the Palmachim Airbase accompanied by Minister of Defense israel Katz (R) and IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir (L). Photo: Maayan Toaf/Israel Gpo/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Netanyahu is Israel's first sitting prime minister to be charged with a crime and denies bribery, fraud and breach of trust charges dating back to his 2019 ⁠indictment.

Trump ⁠has called on Israeli President Isaac Herzog to grant Netanyahu a pardon several times before.

Netanyahu submitted his pardon request in November.

Herzog has in the past disputed Trump's claim that he had promised to grant Netanyahu a pardon.

The United States and Israel on Saturday launched a joint bombing campaign against Iran.

Under Israeli law, the president has the authority to pardon convicts. But there is no precedent for issuing a pardon mid-trial. The legal process of a pardon can be slow.


US Says Attacks on Alleged Drug Boats Have Spooked Traffickers

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the inaugural Americas Counter Cartel Conference at US Southern Command in Doral, Fla., Thursday, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the inaugural Americas Counter Cartel Conference at US Southern Command in Doral, Fla., Thursday, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
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US Says Attacks on Alleged Drug Boats Have Spooked Traffickers

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the inaugural Americas Counter Cartel Conference at US Southern Command in Doral, Fla., Thursday, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the inaugural Americas Counter Cartel Conference at US Southern Command in Doral, Fla., Thursday, March 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

The US campaign to hunt down and destroy boats allegedly bringing drugs from South America has been so successful it is now hard to find targets, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said Thursday.

The United States began targeting these alleged smuggling speedboats in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific in early September and has since destroyed dozens of them, with at least 150 people killed.

The attacks have drawn criticism that they amount to extrajudicial killings.

Hegseth hailed them as he spoke at a conference on fighting drug cartels that was attended by officials from 18 Latin American countries.

"Last month, we went a few weeks without targeting a single boat. Why? Well, because we couldn't find a whole lot of boats to sink," Hegseth said.

"And that's the whole point, is to establish deterrence from narco-terrorists who have been able to traffic almost unfettered," AFP quoted Hegseth as saying.

President Donald Trump's administration insists it is effectively at war with what it calls "narco-terrorists" operating in Latin America.

But it has provided no definitive evidence that the vessels it targets are involved in drug trafficking, prompting heated debate about the legality of the operations.

International law experts and rights groups say the strikes likely amount to extrajudicial killings as they have apparently targeted civilians who do not pose an immediate threat to the United States.

Washington has deployed a large naval force in the Caribbean, where its forces have in recent months struck alleged drug-smuggling boats, seized oil tankers and carried out a stunning raid in which Venezuelan leftist leader Nicolas Maduro was captured and flown to New York for trial on drug trafficking charges.


Trump Says he Needs to be Involved in Selecting Iran's Next Leader

President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable on  in Washington, DC on Wednesday, March 4, 2026. EPA/BONNIE CASH / POOL
President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable on in Washington, DC on Wednesday, March 4, 2026. EPA/BONNIE CASH / POOL
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Trump Says he Needs to be Involved in Selecting Iran's Next Leader

President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable on  in Washington, DC on Wednesday, March 4, 2026. EPA/BONNIE CASH / POOL
President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable on in Washington, DC on Wednesday, March 4, 2026. EPA/BONNIE CASH / POOL

US President Donald Trump told Axios on Thursday that he needs to be personally ⁠involved in selecting Iran's ⁠next leader.

"Khamenei's son is unacceptable to me. ⁠We want someone that will bring harmony and peace to Iran," Axios quoted Trump as saying in an interview.

"I have to ⁠be ⁠involved in the appointment, like with Delcy in Venezuela," Trump said.

Rumors have long swirled around the possibility of Mojtaba Khamenei succeeding his father as supreme leader as he’s close with the Revolutionary Guards.

A member of parliament and firebrand cleric, Hamid Rasaee, wrote Thursday that the killed supreme leader’s son was “an outstanding seminarian” as well as a trusted adviser to his father and an “overseer of many of the country’s affairs.”

A reformist-aligned cleric, Rahmatollah Bigdeli, condemned what he called Rasaee’s “ignorance and bias.”

“The constitution does not specify a time limit for the validity of the interim leadership council, and questioning the validity of this council is tantamount to questioning the legitimacy of the decision-making bodies of the regime,” he replied on X.

A former minister also aligned with Iran’s reformists, Abbas Akhoundi, warned against “a diversionary and toxic debate” over the succession.

“The stench of the power struggle in wartime is nauseating,” Akhoundi wrote on X on Wednesday.