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On Feb. 28, the U.S. and Israel launched strikes against numerous objectives in Iran, utilizing aircraft and Tomahawk cruise projectiles, American authorities informed Air & Space Forces Magazine.
President Donald Trump declared the operation to be “extensive and continuous” during a nocturnal broadcast shared on his online platform, Truth Social. In contrast to previous operations like Operation Midnight Hammer in Iran or Operations Absolute Resolve in Venezuela, Trump indicated this would be a sustained campaign extending for days, or potentially weeks. The American endeavor targeting Iran bears the designation Operation Epic Fury.
“We intend to decimate their rockets and utterly dismantle their missile manufacturing sector,” stated Trump.
Trump vowed a comprehensive military effort. “We shall obliterate their Naval forces,” he declared. “We will guarantee that the area’s extremist surrogates are no longer able to undermine stability in the region or globally, nor assault our troops, and discontinue employing their improvised explosive devices or roadside munitions, as they are occasionally termed, to severely injure and fatally harm multitudes of individuals, including numerous Americans. Furthermore, we will guarantee Iran never acquires an atomic armament. This is a straightforward declaration.”
American authorities corroborated to Air & Space Forces Magazine the extensive reach of the operation. The American armed forces are concentrating on significant objectives, the officials stated, among them subterranean installations presumed by the U.S. to be linked to Iran’s atomic initiative, vital Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps sites, and maritime installations.
American aerial assets took off from numerous airfields throughout the area, with a minimum of one of two American aircraft carriers positioned in the vicinity. Naval vessels initiated Tomahawk ground assault cruise missiles during the initial phase of strikes. Additionally, the U.S. employed kamikaze drones in the endeavor, an American official confirmed.
The undertaking is anticipated to persist for several days, American authorities indicated.
The Israeli Air Force declared in an announcement that its planes “hit numerous military objectives, encompassing [missile] launch systems.” A video was shared showing its F-35s and F-15s departing to commence the assaults.
An American official stated that the U.S. has mostly neutralized Iran’s aerial defense systems, which had already been diminished following prior year’s assaults by Israel and the U.S.
Fox News initially disclosed the deployment of kamikaze drones and certain specifics regarding the American objectives.
Iran responded by assaulting American military installations across the area, among them Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar; Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait; Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates; and Naval Support Activity Bahrain, as reported by Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps. Muwaffaq Al-Salti Air Base in Jordan also suffered an assault, per Iranian national media. The authorities of those nations asserted they effectively intercepted a significant number of these projectiles and denounced Iran’s reaction.
Naval Support Activity Bahrain sustained strikes from a minimum of one missile and an assault drone, as demonstrated by numerous videos disseminated on social media platforms. An American official described the Iranian reaction as an evolving circumstance, and were unable to provide an evaluation of potential harm to any installations. The Italian Air Force, a co-user of Ali Al Salem Air Base, reported that the Kuwaiti base too was hit by missiles, resulting in “considerable damage to the airstrip” despite no casualties.
Trump recognized the peril facing American staff. “My government has undertaken all feasible measures to reduce the danger to U.S. personnel within the area,” Trump affirmed. “The existence of brave American champions might be extinguished, and we could incur losses.”
A non-combatant in Abu Dhabi, the UAE’s capital, perished due to fragments from missile defense systems. Qatar, where the forward command post of U.S. Central Command and the regional Combined Air Operations Center are situated, has already endured three successive rounds of Iranian missile assaults. Kata’ib Hezbollah, an Iraqi paramilitary group allied with Iran, declared its intention to strike American holdings in retaliation.
The American military accumulation in the area comprises scores of Air Force combat aircraft—such as F-35 Lightning II versatile stealth fighters, F-22 Raptor air dominance jets, and F-15E Strike Eagle and F-16 Fighting Falcon multirole aircraft, alongside A-10 Thunderbolt II ground-attack aircraft. The U.S. Navy maintains two aircraft carriers in the region, the USS Gerald R. Ford and the USS Abraham Lincoln, both equipped with F-35Cs, F/A-18 combat jets, and EA-18 electronic warfare aircraft.
The Israel Defense Forces announced via a social media communication that “the IDF and the U.S. Armed Forces have initiated an extensive & collaborative undertaking to completely weaken the Iranian extremist government and progressively eliminate existential dangers to Israel.” Israel named its military effort “Operation Roaring Lion.”
Trump “observed the circumstances through the night” at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida in the company of “elements of his national security cadre,” stated White House Press Secretary Karolina Leavitt. She refrained from disclosing the identities of the officials accompanying Trump. Trump also conversed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to the White House.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio informed seven individuals belonging to the designated Gang of Eight, a group consisting of the Republican and Democratic chiefs of the House and Senate, along with the chairpersons and senior members of the legislative intelligence panels. The Department of Defense alerted the Senate and House Armed Services Committees subsequent to the initiation of the assaults, an official reported.
Iran pledged its retaliation. “We shall impart upon Israel and America a lesson unparalleled in their chronicles,” Fars cited an official declaring. However, beyond the U.S. and Israel, the official asserted that Iran’s reprisal would be manifest throughout the area. “Any facility aiding America and Israel shall become an objective for the Iranian military.”
This article’s audio content is presented by the Air & Space Forces Association, commemorating and assisting our Airmen, Guardians, and their families. Discover further details at afa.org