US claims striking 2,000 targets in Iran, sinking 17 Iranian Navy vessels

In a significant escalation of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, Admiral Brad Cooper, Commander of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), has announced that American forces have struck nearly 2,000 targets across Iran. Describing the operation—codenamed "Operation Epic Fury"—as the largest firepower buildup in the region in a generation, Cooper revealed that over 2,000 munitions have been deployed to systematically dismantle the Islamic Republic’s military infrastructure.

The strikes have targeted critical assets, including ballistic missile launchers, command-and-control centers, and radar stations, aimed at neutralizing Tehran's offensive capabilities. The operational scale of the first 24 hours was reportedly nearly double that of the 2003 "Shock and Awe" campaign in Iraq. US forces, supported by B-2 and B-1 bombers, have executed surgical strikes deep inside Iranian territory, severely degrading the nation's surface-to-air defenses.

According to CENTCOM, these efforts have been highly successful in preventing Iran from pairing enriched uranium with delivery systems, a move that the US and Israel deemed an "existential threat" requiring immediate preemptive action. On the naval front, the US has effectively neutralized the Iranian Navy, sinking 17 vessels, including the country's most operational submarine. Admiral Cooper highlighted that as of Wednesday, not a single Iranian ship remains underway in the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, or the Gulf of Oman.