Hegseth: US, Israel “just getting started” as Iran is "toast and they know it"

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Washington and Israel are intensifying their military campaign against Iran, warning that additional and larger waves of attacks are imminent.

Speaking at a news conference on March 4, Hegseth said, “more forces are arriving” in the Middle East as part of ongoing operations against Iran. He stressed that the United States would take the time necessary to secure a victory, Caliber.Az reports via Al Jazeera. 

“It’s very early and as President Trump has said we will take all the time we need to make sure that we succeed,” he told reporters.

Hegseth said the United States and Israel expect to establish “complete control of Iranian skies” within days, less than a week after the war began.

“The U.S. and Israel will have ‘complete control of Iranian skies’ in under a week,” he said.

He also signaled a significant escalation in firepower, stating that the United States would deploy an “unlimited stockpile of precision gravity bombs.” According to Hegseth, “More and larger waves are coming, ‘we are just getting started.’”

“Our air defenses and that of our allies have plenty of runway. We can sustain this fight easily for as long as we need to,” he added.

Hegseth then said, “America is winning in Iran,” and described the situation facing Tehran in blunt terms: “Iran is ‘toast and they know it.’”

He further stated, “This was never meant to be a fair fight, and it is not a fair fight. We are punching them while they're down.”

Hegseth also announced that the leader of an Iranian unit allegedly involved in an attempt to assassinate President Donald Trump had been killed in a U.S. operation earlier this week.

“The leader of the unit who attempted to assassinate President Trump has been hunted down and killed. Iran tried to kill President Trump. And President Trump got the last laugh,” he said. He did not name the individual.

In January 2025, Iran denied allegations that it had plotted to kill Trump, rejecting claims made by Trump and the U.S. government.

Hegseth also said that, “Last night, we sunk their prize ship, the Soleimani. Looks like POTUS got him twice.”

By Sabina Mammadli