Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the United States delivered a “devastating military defeat” to Iran, and told reporters on Wednesday that President Donald Trump “chose mercy” when reaching a ceasefire agreement.
President Donald Trump announced the two-week ceasefire with Iran on Tuesday evening, before the deadline imposed on Iran’s cooperation had expired. Hegseth emphasized that the U.S. was prepared to act had that deadline passed without an agreement. “Had Iran refused our terms, the next targets were their power plants, bridges, oil, and energy infrastructure, targets they could not defend or realistically rebuild,” he said. “It would have taken decades and we were locked and loaded.”
Hegseth described Operation Epic Fury as an “historic and overwhelming victory” during his ten-minute opening statement at the briefing.
“Iran has been a threat to the United States and free world for 47 years. Chants of ‘Death to America,’ targeting our people, killing Americans, lying and blackmailing toward a nuclear weapon, or so they thought. No longer. Not on our watch,” Hegseth said. “Other presidents marked time and kicked the can down the road. President Trump made history.”
“From the strike that took out Soleimani to tearing up the disastrous Obama-Iran deal, to the precision campaign that obliterated Iran’s nuclear sites in Midnight Hammer to the victory we just achieved in Operation Epic Fury, no other president shown courage and resolve of this commander-in-chief,” Hegseth continued. “President Trump forged this moment. Iran begged for this ceasefire. And we all know it. As President Truthed this morning, ‘big day for world peace.’ Iran wants this to happen, they’ve had enough. Operation Epic Fury was a historic and overwhelming victory on the battlefield.”
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Trump announced that American and Israeli forces launched strikes against Iran on Feb. 28 after negotiations over the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile programs collapsed.
“Iran shot hundreds and hundreds of missiles and attack one-way attack drones at our aircraft carrier. They were obsessed with it and they never got even close,” Hegseth said. “Every single one of those was easily shot down miles and miles away from the Abe Lincoln. They were blowing ammo into fantasy land. Contrast that with most significantly, in last night’s wave of more than 800 strikes, we finished completely destroying Iran’s defense industrial base, a core pillar of our mission objective.”
“What little they have left buried in bunkers is all they will have. They can still shoot, we know that,” Hegseth continued. “Their command and control is so decimated, they can’t really talk and coordinate, so they still may shoot here and there, but that would be very, very unwise. But they can no longer build missiles, build rockets, build launchers, or build UAVs. Their factories have been razed to the ground, set back in historic fashion.”
Hegseth told reporters that the United States also had been prepared to fulfill Trump’s threat to target the regime’s infrastructure.
“Had Iran refused our terms, the next targets would have been their power plants, their bridges and oil and energy infrastructure targets they could not defend and could not realistically rebuild,” Hegseth said. “It would have taken them decades, and we were locked and loaded. They couldn’t defend against it. President Trump had the power to cripple Iran’s entire economy in minutes, but he chose, he chose mercy.”
Hegseth paid tribute to the American personnel killed during the conflict during the end of his remarks. As of Wednesday morning, seven American military personnel died from hostile action in Operation Epic Fury, with six others dying in the crash of an Air Force KC-135R tanker and one dying of a medical incident.
“To the warriors of Epic Fury, I say well done. You’re the backbone of our country, your skill, your bravery, and sheer guts and grit showed the world what America is all about. I’m proud of you. We’re proud of you. The president is proud of you. Job well done,” Hegseth said. “But stay vigilant and stay ready To the families of our fallen, your sacrifice was in service of a historic cause, and we will always remember your heroes, our heroes. We will continue to honor them.”
“And to our Israeli allies, thank you for being a brave, capable and willing ally on this battlefield. Thee rest of the world and the rest of our so-called allies saw what real capabilities look like. They should take some notes,” Hegseth continued. “Our troops, our American warriors, deserve the credit for this day, but God deserves all the glory. Tens of thousands of sorties, refuelings and strikes carried out under the protection of divine Providence, a massive effort with miraculous protection. Dude 44 Bravo spoke for all of us: God is good.”
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