US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has sparked controversy after claiming the killing of an Iranian operative linked to a plot to assassinate Donald Trump. Speaking at a press conference, Hegseth said: 'The leader of the unit who attempted to assassinate President Trump has been hunted down and killed.' The remark drew criticism for invoking an alleged assassination plot that had been charged under the Biden administration.
Hegseth was providing an update on the joint US-Israeli military operation against Iran, which he said had delivered 'twice the air power of shock and awe of Iraq in 2003'. He claimed the Iranian regime was 'toast' and that the US would have complete control of Iranian airspace within days. General Dan Caine, chairman of the joint chiefs, said Iran's ballistic missile capability had been reduced by 86% and its navy largely destroyed.
The offensive has come at a heavy cost. More than 1,000 civilians have been killed in Iran, including 180 children, most of them schoolgirls killed when their school was bombed. Hegseth was evasive when asked about the incident, saying only that the US was investigating and that US forces 'never target civilian targets'. Six US soldiers have been killed in a drone strike in Kuwait, with 11 reported dead in Israel.
Hegseth confirmed that a US submarine had sunk an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean, the first such sinking by torpedo since World War II. He also said that Jordan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait were intercepting Iranian missiles and drones. When asked about calls for a ceasefire from Russia and China, Hegseth dismissed them, saying: 'They’re not really a factor here.'
