US Secretary of Defense Hegseth: This is not a regime change war, but the regime has changed

Stating that the goal of the attacks conducted by the US and Israel against Iran is extremely clear, Hegseth said, “To destroy Iran's attack missiles, to destroy Iran's missile production, and to prevent them from acquiring nuclear weapons by destroying their energy and other security infrastructure. Tehran was not negotiating; they were stalling to gain time to rebuild their missile stockpiles. Iran was building powerful missiles as a shield for its nuclear blackmail.”

Emphasizing that they did not look at any rules of engagement, Hegseth said, “We did not get into political correctness. We did not want to lose time or lives. This is not a regime change war, but the regime has changed. There are no US troops on the ground in Iran,” he spoke.

US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine, in his statement detailing the attacks against Iran, expressed that casualties could increase. Caine assessed, “We expect additional casualties and, as always, we will work to minimize our losses. However, this is a major military operation. To be clear, achieving the military objectives will take some time. The situation will be challenging.”

Caine stated that he was aware of the information regarding the crash of 3 US Air Force 'F-15' fighter jets, noting that 'this was not the result of enemy fire.'

Stating that they are carrying out the orders of US President Donald Trump, Caine said, “We are open to evaluating the opportunities ahead. I have been in constant contact with the President over the past 2 days. I know very well where the President's focus is.”

What happened?

The attack on Iran, which the US and Israel launched on February 28, continues into its third day. Following the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in the attack on Tehran, a 40-day mourning period was declared in the country, while Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed group in Lebanon, launched missiles and drones at Israel in retaliation.

Hezbollah, long one of Tehran's primary allies in the Middle East, announced that it launched the attack in response to Israel's killing of Khamenei and Israel's continuous violations against Lebanon.

Israel also carried out retaliatory attacks against Hezbollah. The Kuwaiti Ministry of Defense announced that several US military aircraft had crashed, but all crew members survived.

It was announced that at least 10 people lost their lives in Israel's attacks in southern Lebanon. The Iranian Red Crescent also announced that 555 people have lost their lives in the attacks so far.