President Trump announced early Saturday, in a video posted to his Truth Social account, that the United States has begun “major combat operations” in Iran. He made the remarks as Israel said it was launching a preemptive attack on the country.
Trump said the aim of the operation is to defend Americans by eliminating what he described as imminent threats from the Iranian regime. He characterized Iran as a dangerous, hostile state whose activities threaten the United States, U.S. forces abroad and American allies around the world. He cited decades of anti‑American hostility from the regime and listed past attacks and proxy operations as justification for the U.S. action.
He recalled Iran’s early role in the 1979 U.S. Embassy takeover in Tehran, which held dozens of Americans captive for 444 days, and cited the 1983 Marine barracks bombing in Beirut that killed 241 U.S. service members. He referenced the attack on the USS Cole in 2000 and said Iranian forces and proxies have killed and wounded hundreds of American service members in Iraq and continued to target U.S. forces and vessels in recent years.
Trump also pointed to the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, saying Iran’s proxies were responsible for the massacre that killed over 1,000 people, including 46 Americans, and resulted in the abduction of 12 U.S. citizens. He called Iran the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism and accused the regime of violently suppressing recent domestic protests, saying it had killed tens of thousands of its own citizens.
Restating his administration’s longstanding position, Trump said the United States will not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon. He said that last June’s “Operation Midnight Hammer” destroyed Iran’s nuclear infrastructure at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan, and that U.S. officials repeatedly warned Iran and sought negotiated solutions that the regime rejected.
Trump alleged Iran has attempted to rebuild its nuclear program and to develop long‑range missiles capable of threatening U.S. allies, deployed forces and, potentially, the American homeland. For those reasons, he said, the U.S. military is conducting a large, ongoing operation intended to neutralize those threats: destroying missile stockpiles and facilities, degrading the missile industry, targeting naval capabilities, and disrupting the networks of proxy forces that, he said, destabilize the region and attack U.S. personnel.
He warned members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s armed forces and police to lay down their weapons, offering “complete immunity” if they surrender or saying they would otherwise face “certain death.” He urged Iranian civilians to stay sheltered, saying bombing would make the outside dangerous, and told Iranians that once operations conclude they should seize the opportunity to take control of their government.
Trump acknowledged risks to U.S. service members, saying his administration had taken steps to minimize those risks but that casualties could occur. He expressed prayers for the troops and confidence in the U.S. military’s strength and capability, and closed by invoking God’s blessing on the armed forces and the United States.