Newsman: The U.S. is on “high alert” for any retaliation from Tehran after the nation bombed three Iran nuclear sites, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said Sunday at a Pentagon briefing.
“Our forces remain on high alert and are fully postured to respond to any Iranian retaliation or proxy attacks, which would be an incredibly poor choice. We will defend ourselves. The safety of our service members and civilians remains our highest priority,” Caine said.
President Donald Trump, in a live address at the White House on Saturday, said more strikes could come. “Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace,” he said. “If they do not, future attacks will be far greater and a lot easier.”
Army Gen. Erik Kurilla, the commander of U.S. Central Command, has elevated force protection measures in the region, Caine said, “especially in Iraq, Syria and the Gulf.” There are about 40,000 U.S. troops in the region.
Hegseth said the USA’s B-2 stealth bombers, in a mission called Operation Midnight Hammer, “went in and out … without the world knowing at all. In that way it was historic.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Iran’s nuclear ambitions “have been obliterated” in the Saturday night strike. “The order we received from our commander in chief was focused, it was powerful, and it was clear. We devastated the Iranian nuclear program,” Hegseth said.
The U.N. Security Council was also set to meet later Sunday over the bombings, officials said.
