WASHINGTON (TNND) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will provide an update Tuesday morning about Operation Epic Fury as the United States and Israel continue to launch attacks in Iran.
Hegseth is expected to address the media with Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, at 8 a.m.
Smoke rises following an Israeli airstrike in Dahiyeh, Beirut’s southern suburbs, Lebanon, Monday, March 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)
The news conference comes after Hegseth stressed during an interview with “60 Minutes” that “this is only the beginning.”
The U.S. and Israel began their large-scale military attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, leading to the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
On Monday, Iranian state TV announced Ali Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, will be the new supreme leader.
Iran’s Assembly of Experts chose the 56-year-old, who served in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) during the latter years of the Iran-Iraq War. The Council on Foreign Relations describes the IRGC as “one of the most powerful and feared organizations in Iran,” with central roles in power projection, internal security, and the economy.
President Donald Trump said on Monday that operations in Iran could end “soon,” with Operation Epic Fury moving ahead of schedule.
“Two levels of leadership are gone, most people have never even heard of the leadership that they’re talking about, so it’s obviously been very powerful, very effective,” Trump said.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed the strikes on Iran would continue.
“Our aim is to bring the Iranian people to cast off the yoke of tyranny, (but) ultimately it depends on them,” Netanyahu said during a meeting with Israel’s hospital and health system leaders. “There is no doubt that with the actions taken so far, we are breaking their bones.”
Iran’s parliament speaker on Tuesday dismissed any suggestion that Tehran sought a ceasefire in the war.
“We are definitely not looking for a ceasefire; we believe that the aggressor should be punched in the mouth so that he learns a lesson so that he will never think of attacking our beloved Iran again,” Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf wrote on X. “The Zionist regime sees its shameful existence in the continuation of the cycle of ‘war-negotiation-ceasefire and then war again’ to consolidate its dominance. We will break this cycle.”
Seven U.S. soldiers have been killed while supporting the military efforts.
Over 36,000 Americans have safely returned to the United States from the Middle East since the operation began, according to the State Department.
Trump and other top administration leaders have justified the strikes as a preemptive military operation against what they described as imminent threats from Iran, particularly related to ballistic missiles and potential nuclear capabilities.
_____
Editor’s note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.
National Headline
