‘They Dragged Their Feet in Negotiations, and Now They’ll Pay the Price’: Trump Launches Attack on Iran

U.S. President Donald Trump commented today, Wednesday, on the American military strikes in southern Iran overnight, which came after the Islamic Republic shot down an Apache helicopter, in a post on the Truth social network. “They took far too long to negotiate an agreement that could have been great for them, and now they will have to pay the price!” he said.

The American president also said, not for the first time, that “Iran’s military is a total and complete mess. Large parts of it, like the navy and air force, basically no longer exist, they have been completely defeated. Iran is all talk and very little action. The bully of the Middle East is dead!” Shortly afterward, and according to Fox News, Trump claimed that he was “close to ordering new strikes against power stations and bridges in Iran,” and again repeated the mantra that it is taking Tehran too long to reach an agreement.

Meanwhile, the American president again posted, this time directing his fire at the “fake news” media, which he said refuses to report how effective the U.S. naval blockade is. “The most successful blockade in the history of naval warfare. Nothing gets through unless we want it to, it’s a steel wall!” he wrote. He added that “Iran is rapidly becoming a failed state,” and ended by saying: “A lot of oil is coming out. Praise Allah!”

As noted, the U.S. military completed a large-scale operation in southern Iran overnight, involving three consecutive waves of strikes. In response, Tehran reported that it had launched a direct retaliatory attack against American targets. The Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters, the body responsible for the supreme operational command of the Iranian armed forces, said its forces had attacked several American bases in the area.

The American operation, ordered by President Donald Trump, came in response to the downing of the American Apache helicopter in the area yesterday. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) issued an official statement confirming the completion of the strikes. According to the statement, U.S. Air Force and Navy fighter jets used precision munitions to strike air defense systems, ground control stations and surveillance radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM stressed that the operation was a “proportionate response” to the Apache being shot down and to recent attacks on U.S. forces and commercial vessels. At the end of the statement, it said U.S. forces “remain alert and prepared to defend against unjustified Iranian aggression.”

In parallel with the announcement of drone launches toward Bahrain, the Revolutionary Guard said it had struck Al-Azraq Air Base in Jordan, which is used by U.S. forces, with long-range missiles. According to Iran, four targets were hit at the base, including F-35 hangars and a command and control center. However, the Jordanian army said its forces intercepted and shot down five of the missiles fired toward the kingdom. Despite the interceptions, the Revolutionary Guard threatened that it was “prepared for a crushing and decisive response” to any further American attack.

The Iranian response came after a turbulent night in Hormozgan province. Throughout the night, Iranian reports described a series of powerful, successive explosions heard in the strategic port city of Bandar Abbas, as well as in the port city of Sirik. According to the Revolutionary Guard, the American strikes in Sirik hit a communications tower and destroyed two water tanks. At the same time, the range of impacts widened, as the Iranian news agency Mehr reported, citing local sources, that sounds resembling an explosion were also heard in the city of Ahvaz in the southwest of the country.