US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has claimed that an Iranian assassination squad attempted to kill President Donald Trump, but the plot was thwarted. Speaking at a press conference, Hegseth said US forces had “hunted down and killed” the leader of the unit responsible for the attempt.
“Iran tried to kill President Trump. And President Trump got the last laugh,” Hegseth told reporters. The Secretary also asserted that the US is winning its military operation against Iran “decisively, devastatingly and without mercy.” He confirmed that additional forces, including jet fighters and bombers, will soon arrive in the region, adding that the US “will take all the time we need to make sure that we succeed.”
Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine stated that American forces have adequate munitions for ongoing operations. Hegseth noted that while the military used more advanced weapons at the start of the campaign, it is now switching to gravity bombs as the US has gained control of Iranian skies. Stockpiles of advanced weapons remain “extremely strong,” he said.
Hegseth also revealed that a US submarine sank an Iranian warship with a torpedo on Tuesday night, marking the first such attack on an enemy since the Second World War. “An American submarine sunk an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters,” he said. Earlier reports indicated that 32 people were rescued from the Iranian ship off the coast of Sri Lanka, but 140 remain missing. The US military previously stated it had destroyed 17 Iranian vessels, with the goal of sinking “the entire navy.”
