Pentagon chief says U.S. intensifying strikes on Iran

U.S. assaults on Iran will hit a brand new depth Tuesday (March 10, 2026) and the warfare will proceed so long as U.S. President Donald Trump decides, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth mentioned.

“Right this moment might be but once more our most intense day of strikes inside Iran,” Mr. Hegseth informed a information convention on the Pentagon greater than 10 days into the U.S.-Israeli warfare in opposition to the Islamic republic.

Israel-Iran warfare updates on March 10, 2026

As for a timeline for the warfare, Mr. Trump “will get to regulate the throttle. He is the one deciding,” Mr. Hegseth mentioned.

“It is not for me to posit whether or not it is the start, the center or the tip,” the Protection Secretary mentioned.

Among the many targets of the battle is the destruction of Iran’s navy, which has been focused with “artillery, fighters, bombers and sea-launched missiles,” Basic Dan Caine, the highest U.S. navy officer, mentioned alongside Mr. Hegseth.

Iran has vowed to dam all oil exports through the Gulf whereas the warfare lasts, whereas Mr. Trump has threatened “loss of life, hearth, and fury” if Tehran interferes with crude exports.

Mr. Caine mentioned U.S. forces proceed “to hunt and strike mine-laying vessels and mine storage amenities” — weapons Iran may use to dam maritime visitors.

Mr. Hegseth in the meantime accused Iran of “shifting rocket launchers into civilian neighborhoods, close to faculties, close to hospitals to attempt to stop our capacity to strike — that is how they function.”

He didn’t instantly deal with a strike early within the battle that hit an elementary college within the southern metropolis of Minab, which Iran mentioned killed greater than 150 individuals.

Mr. Trump has mentioned the incident is being investigated, whereas suggesting Monday that Iran might have fired a Tomahawk missile on the college itself. Iran doesn’t possess Tomahawks — a U.S. weapon used extensively by U.S. forces.