SEOUL, February 28 (AJP) - United States President Donald Trump announced the start of "major combat operations" against Iran in an eight-minute video posted to Truth Social at approximately 2:30 a.m. Saturday (local time). The move marks a massive military escalation in the Middle East, ending an eight-month period of relative calm following the 12-Day War last June.
"The United States military has undertaken a massive and ongoing operation to prevent this very wicked, radical dictatorship from threatening America and our core national security interests," President Trump said in the video speech.
He accused the Iranian government of attempting to rebuild its nuclear program and developing long-range missiles. "We are going to destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground. It will be totally, again, obliterated. We are going to annihilate their navy," he added.
The U.S. offensive follows a series of "preventive strikes" launched by the Israeli Ministry of Defense against Tehran. Iranian state television reported explosions and thick smoke rising from the capital's city center, with international media reporting blasts near the office of the 86-year-old Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. It remains unconfirmed if Khamenei was present, as he has not appeared in public for several days. Following the strikes, Israel ordered a nationwide closure of schools and businesses.
President Trump stated the operations also aim to neutralize regional proxies and protect allies. "We are going to ensure that the region's terrorist proxies can no longer destabilize the region or the world, and attack our forces, and no longer use their IEDs—or roadside bombs, as they are sometimes called—to so gravely wound and kill thousands and thousands of people including many Americans," he said. He further emphasized that the mission would "ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon."
This escalation follows the deployment of the largest assembly of American military assets in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The buildup includes two aircraft carrier strike groups, led by the USS Abraham Lincoln and the USS Gerald R. Ford, and over 100 fighter jets including F-35s and F-22s.
The shift to open combat follows the collapse of diplomatic efforts. Washington had engaged in three rounds of indirect nuclear negotiations with Tehran through intermediaries in Switzerland and Oman, but the talks failed to reach a breakthrough. During the final round in Geneva on February 26, U.S. negotiators reportedly demanded the full dismantling of nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.
The current hostilities follow the 12-Day War of June 2025, which caused significant damage to Iranian nuclear infrastructure and military leadership before a ceasefire was reached on June 24. President Trump characterized the new offensive as a necessary response to renewed Iranian provocations.
The Pentagon has not yet released specific details regarding the initial targets of the American strikes. Iranian officials have previously warned that any military action by the United States would be met with a decisive response.
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