President Donald Trump announced that the United States had begun major combat operations in Iran.
In an eight-minute video statement posted to Truth Social, he described the mission as a "massive and ongoing operation" to eliminate imminent threats and prevent the Iranian regime from acquiring nuclear weapons.
In outlining military objectives, Trump stated that the goal is to destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground, 'annihilate their Navy' and dismantle regional terrorist proxies.
He alleged that Iran 'rejected every opportunity' for a peaceful deal.
Τhe US President acknowledged that American lives may be lost, but called it a 'noble mission' for the future.
He also had a message for Iranian citizens. 'The hour of your freedom is at hand,' indicating a potential goal of regime change.
'It's yours to take, he then added.
This escalation follows a series of recent warnings, with Trump telling Congress on his State of the Union on February 24th, that he would 'never allow' Iran to have a nuclear weapon and claimed they had developed missiles capable of reaching the U.S.
On February 19th, Trump issued a narrow 10 day window for Iran to meet U.S. nuclear demands before military action would be taken.
These 2026 operations come less than a year after the June 2025 "precision strikes" that targeted three major Iranian nuclear sites.
SOURCE: Reuters