Hegseth says US torpedo sank Iranian warship, says US will fight “as long as we need to”
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Caine said Wednesday at a press conference at the Pentagon that US Central Command is making “some progress” as The war against Iran has entered its fifth daywhile Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said an American submarine had sunk an Iranian warship.
Hegseth emphasized that the project is still in its early days, noting that “the metrics are changing, the dust is settling and a lot of power is coming.” Hegseth said the US “can easily support this war as long as we need to” and “we are starting.”
“It’s very early, and as President Trump has said, we’re going to take all the time we need to make sure we succeed,” Hegseth said.
He said a torpedo from an American submarine sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean that “thought it was safe in international waters.”
“Instead it was sunk by a torpedo — a quiet death,” Hegseth said, adding that it was the first torpedo sinking of an enemy ship since World War II.
Caine said the operation destroyed more than 20 Iranian warships, one submarine, “and effectively reduced, at this point in time, the largest Iranian military presence in the theater.”
“Only the United States of America can lead this, only us,” Hegseth said. “But if you add the Israel Defense Forces, a superpower, the combination is total destruction of our Islamist Iranian enemies. They’re toast, and they know it. Or at least soon, they will.”
Hegseth said “we have just begun to hunt, demolish, debilitate, destroy and defeat their abilities.
“In four days we just started fighting,” said Hegseth.
He said that “Iran negotiated in bad faith, mother, formed strategies and prepared to strike, and we defended ourselves to protect our people, our interests and our allies.”
Hegseth said the military operation could last several weeks.
“The only limitation we have on this is President Trump’s desire to achieve certain results on behalf of the American people,” Hegseth said. “And that’s why we don’t talk – you can’t say four weeks but it could be six, it could be eight, it could be three. In the end, we set the pace and the tempo. The enemy is off balance and we’re going to keep them off balance. And we know their firepower versus our defensive ability. That difference is growing more and more every day.”
US troops hit more than 2,000 targets in Iran, including command and control centers, missile sites, Iranian naval vessels and submarines, and IRGC headquarters.
So far, six members of the US have been killed and 10 seriously injured, a US official told CBS News. Caine on Wednesday officially announced the the names of four service members.
“To the families of the deceased, we mourn with you today,” said Caine, noting that the names of some service members are being withheld at this time as their families are being notified.
On Monday, Caine said the military expected “more losses.”
Caine also outlined the military objectives of the campaign, saying that the first is to target and eliminate Iran’s missile programs, destroy the Iranian navy and ensure that Iran cannot quickly rebuild or consolidate its military or military capabilities.
“As of this morning, US Central Command is making some progress,” Caine said.
On Tuesday, under Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby was asked during the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing why it was necessary for the US to take military action against Tehran over the weekend.
Colby referred to the comments of Hegseth, Caine, and President Trump, who talked about the “rapid build-up and reconstruction” of Iran’s missiles and a one-way attack, but did not give a specific reason for what caused President Trump’s order to go into effect last weekend.
