Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM), said on Wednesday that US forces struck nearly 2,000 Iranian targets within the first 100 hours of Operation Epic Fury.
Cooper social media platform
Cooper said the operation involved “more than 50,000 troops, 200 fighter planes, two aircraft carriers and bombers,” representing “the largest build-up by the US in the Middle East in a generation.”
He said, “Many of you will remember the shock and awe of the 2003 attacks. The first 24 hours of this operation literally doubled in scale, and we continue to attack Iran 24/7, from sea to space and cyberspace.”
The CENTCOM commander explained that the first phase of Operation Epic Fury focused on “severely reducing” Iran’s air defenses and ballistic missile launchers. He also said that Iran’s “entire navy” had been eliminated.
He said, “We have seriously weakened Iran’s air defenses and destroyed hundreds of Iran’s ballistic missiles, launchers and drones. In simple terms, we are focused on shooting down everything that can shoot at us.”
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Cooper noted the deployment of B-52 bombers to attack Iran’s ballistic missile and command infrastructure—a notable demonstration of the success of the operation to strip Iran of its air defenses, as mass and aging The B-52 would have difficulty operating against modern anti-aircraft defenses. The first version of the B-52 entered service in 1952.
He said, “US air forces are doing what they do best, carrying out massive airstrikes in Iran. Operationally, the two most powerful air forces in the world, the US and Israel, are dominating the skies over the world’s largest sponsor of terror.”
Cooper said U.S. forces “will continue to conduct dynamic targeting operations or hunt down Iran’s last remaining mobile ballistic missile launchers” to eliminate Iran’s “long-range launch capability.” He said Iran is using that capability to deliberately attack civilian targets throughout the Middle East.
He said, “To be clear, Iran is indiscriminately targeting civilians as they launch these missiles and drones. You’ve seen it on TV, the evidence is absolutely clear and overwhelming.”
He concluded, “My overall operational assessment is that we are ahead of our gameplan.”
Although a lot has happened media concerns An unnamed Western official has said Iran’s missile inventory far exceeds the ability of US and allied forces to intercept terrorist launches against civilian targets. told wall street journal (WSJ) said on Wednesday that the volume of Iranian missile launches is declining rapidly, and Iran may only have “a few more days of firepower” left.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said, “The enemy can no longer fire missiles in the quantities they once did, not even close. Our and our allies’ air defenses have adequate runways. We can easily continue this fight as long as we need to.” Said On Wednesday.
He said, “We are accelerating, not slowing down. Iran’s capabilities are being eroded every hour, while American power is becoming fiercer, smarter, and more effective. America is winning decisively and without mercy.”
Gen. Dan Cain, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who appeared at the news conference with Hegseth, said, “Iran’s theater ballistic missile shots have reduced 86% since the first day of the fighting, 23% over the last 24 hours, and their one-sided strike drone shots have reduced 73% since the early days.”
