Nikki Haley is dropping out of the U.S. presidential race, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday, a decision that will ensure Donald Trump will win the Republican nomination and once again face Democratic President Joe Biden in November's election.
Haley, a former US Ambassador to the United Nations, is expected to make an appearance to deliver brief remarks in the Charleston area of South Carolina around 10:00 am ET (1500 GMT).
She will not announce an endorsement on Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported, but will encourage Trump to earn the support of Republican and independent voters who backed her.
Haley was Trump's last remaining rival for the Republican nomination.
On Super Tuesday Trump won the Republican votes in 14 of 15 states - including delegate-rich California and Texas - brushing aside Haley, whose only win of the night came in Vermont.
The Journal said Haley was expected to emphasize that she will continue to advocate for the conservative domestic and foreign policies she supports and caution against some of the dangers, such as isolationism and a lack of fiscal discipline, that she sees coming from Washington.
Israel pounded Lebanon with more than 120 air strikes on Tuesday in one of the heaviest days of bombing in weeks, Lebanese security sources said, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his military was deepening its operations in the country.
Syria's transitional leadership has located remnants of former President Bashar al-Assad's clandestine chemical weapons programme, including raw materials and munitions similar to those used to carry out deadly gas attacks during the country's long-running civil war.
US President Donald Trump, who turns 80 next month, said "everything checked out perfectly" after having his physical on Tuesday at Walter Reed National Military Medical ​Center, following a year of public attention on apparently minor health issues.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday negotiating a deal with Iran could "take a few days," quashing hopes for an imminent end to the conflict a day after US forces conducted what Washington called defensive strikes in southern Iran.