US President Donald Trump stated Thursday that the conflict with Iran is advancing "very rapidly".
"The situation with Iran is moving along very rapidly. It's doing very well, our military is unsurpassed," Trump said during a Women’s History Month event at the White House.
He described Iran as "a nation of terror and hate," adding that the Islamic Republic is "paying a big price right now."
Trump did not address the first public comments made by Mojtaba Khamenei as the new Supreme Leader of Iran.
Khamenei vowed revenge and reiterated Iran’s commitment to maintaining control over the vital Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for global oil shipments. Notably, Khamenei’s statement was not accompanied by video or audio, leading to speculation about his condition.
On Wednesday evening, Trump spoke to reporters upon his return from a rally in Kentucky, and said Iran is being decimated and is “pretty much at the end of the line".
At the same time, Trump added that the US will not end the conflict immediately.
"They've got no Navy. They've got no Air Force. They have no systems of control. We're just riding free range over that country!" he said.
Asked about reports of Iranian sleeper cells inside the US, Trump replied, "We know where most of them are, we've got our eye on all of them - I think."
During his speech at the Kentucky rally, Trump said that the US needs to “finish the job" in the war with Iran.
He added that the Iranians “don’t know what the hell hit them. They don’t know. They got hit by the American military - they don’t know. They say, ‘What the hell is happening?’ They didn’t expect anything like this."
Trump stated that “we don’t want to leave early" and “we’ve got to finish the job", adding that “over the past 11 days, our military has virtually destroyed Iran."
“We don’t want to go back every two years. Because someday there will be a time when you don’t have me as president," he added.