US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth stated today (Thursday) that the American military will be ready to strike Iran if President Donald Trump orders such a strike, the New York Post reported.
“We’re having to rebuild how our enemies perceive us. And when President Trump said, we’re not getting a nuclear Iran, you won’t have a nuclear bomb, you meant it," Hegseth stated.
He cited the recent capture of Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro to explain why Iran should take Trump's threats seriously. “They should not pursue nuclear capabilities, and we will be prepared to deliver whatever this president expects of the War Department, just like we did this month, no other military in the world could have, could have executed the most sophisticated, powerful raid, not just in American history."
Yesterday, President Trump stated that an American armada was sailing toward the Middle East in response to Iran's brutal crackdown on anti-regime protests, which resulted in the deaths of many thousands of people, with reported death tolls ranging from 3,000 according to the regime to over 36,000, according to some reports.
Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: "As I told Iran once before, MAKE A DEAL! They didn’t, and there was 'Operation Midnight Hammer,' a major destruction of Iran. The next attack will be far worse! Don’t make that happen again."
Sources in Israel believe that Trump is signaling that he is considering a broad move regarding Iran, which includes regime change, Kan News reported.
While the U.S. military continues to build up additional forces in the Middle East, there is a desire in the U.S. to see an end to the rule of the ayatollahs in Iran. While President Trump offers a diplomatic route to the Iranians, he also tweeted that "time is running out" for a deal.