The U.S. attacked Iran the morning of Feb. 28, launching a massive and ongoing military operation, World News Group reported. The assault killed Iran’s leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with many senior leaders of the Iranian government.
Known as Operation Epic Fury, the attack involved both U.S. and Israeli forces. Targets included “senior military and political officials such as Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps leaders, aerial defense systems, ballistic missiles and launchers, intelligence targets and command centers,” the Wall Street Journal reported.
Iran responded by launching attacks on U.S. military bases, Israel, Gulf States and other targets, including U.S. Embassies, the Wall Street Journal reported. Hezbollah, an Islamic terrorist group, attacked Israel after the death of the Ayatollah, leading Israel to station troops in Lebanon and strike Hezbollah command centers.
Six U.S. service members were killed as of March 3, and over 700 people have died, the Wall Street Journal reported.
In a video statement released by The White House, President Trump said Iran has targeted the U.S. for nearly half a century.
“For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted death to America and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder, targeting the United States, our troops, and the innocent people in many, many countries,” he said.
The president cited Iran’s takeover of the Tehran U.S. embassy in 1979, the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, Iran’s funding of terrorist groups, the Iranian government’s recent crackdown on protests where they killed 10,000 of their citizens and other events.
Trump highlighted the U.S.’s ongoing policy that Iran can’t gain nuclear weapons.
“They've rejected every opportunity to renounce their nuclear ambitions, and we can't take it anymore,” Trump said. “Instead, they attempted to rebuild their nuclear program and to continue developing long range missiles that can now threaten our very good friends and allies in Europe, our troops stationed overseas and could soon reach the American homeland. …For these reasons, the United States military is undertaking a massive and ongoing operation to prevent this very wicked, radical dictatorship from threatening America and our core national security interests.”
Operation Epic Fury launched after the third round of indirect negotiations between Iran and the U.S. – regarding the former’s nuclear developments – didn’t result in agreement, World News Group reported.
Multiple presidential administrations have been concerned about Iran’s pursuit of nuclear power and sponsorship of terror groups, Nicholas Kerton-Johnson, Loy chair of political science and associate professor of international relations at Taylor University, said.
The changing global landscape may have played a part in the attack’s timing. Iran is a major source of oil for China, and Russia uses Iranian drone technology in their attack on Ukraine, Kerton-Johnson said.
China is flaunting a rising group of authoritarian leaders, Kerton-Johnson said. The attack on Iran shows that the West is still the dominant power. America can do what it wants where it wants; China and Russia are helpless to stop it.
“China and Russia cannot stop it, and Iran had some of the best Russian military technology, and it's useless against American technology,” Kerton-Johnson said. “So on the macro scale, America is showing that they're still strong and they're still willing to use force, and they can do what they want, where they want … there's a check to authoritarian countries.”
Many prominent leaders in American politics have weighed in on the conflict, including Sen. Todd Young, R-Indiana.
“Americans should pray for the safety of our brave troops, and for wisdom from their leaders,” Young said in a statement released over the weekend. “Iran has refused to dismantle its nuclear program despite repeated American efforts at diplomacy over decades. The Iranian regime has funded terror around the globe—including against thousands of Americans—and murdered its own citizens who peacefully called for freedom. No one wants more conflict in the Middle East, but Iran can never have a nuclear weapon. I look forward to Congress being fully briefed on the operation and included in discussion about any next steps. The American people will have questions pertaining to the nature of threats, risks to our troops and homeland, and objectives sought. Their questions must be answered."
