Trump Vows Full-Force Strikes on Iran Continue: “Any Leader Who Rises Will Be Eliminated”

Washington, DC — March 5, 2026
US President Donald Trump has declared that American and Israeli strikes on Iran will continue at full force, warning that any figure attempting to assume leadership in Iran will be targeted, as the ongoing conflict enters its fifth day.
“We Struck First”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio offered a direct justification for the preemptive strike, telling reporters that since Israel was planning to attack Iran, the US anticipated that Iran would then retaliate against American forces — so Washington chose to strike Iran first to neutralize that threat.  (KCTV)
“Iran Was Two Weeks From a Nuclear Weapon”
Trump claimed that had the US and Israel not struck, Iran “would soon have had missiles capable of reaching America,” adding the country posed “grave threats” and was close to a nuclear capability.  (Air & Space Forces Magazine) However, independent nuclear policy experts and the Arms Control Association disputed this timeline, saying it would take Iran years to fully rebuild its enrichment facilities that were bombed in June 2025, and that converting enriched material into a functional weapon would take months beyond that.  (FDD)
The Obama Deal
Tehran had been escalating its nuclear programme since 2018, when Trump, during his first term, withdrew from the multilateral nuclear agreement and imposed sweeping sanctions on Iran’s economy as part of his “maximum pressure” campaign.  (The War Zone) Trump reiterated that the Obama-era deal was the “worst deal ever made,” claiming it paved the way for Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
48 Leaders Eliminated
Trump announced in a Fox News interview that 48 Iranian leaders had been killed during the operation, though he declined to reveal the identities of those targeted.  (19FortyFive)
Timeline
Trump said the war was initially projected to last four to five weeks, while adding the US military has the “capability to go far longer.”  (Air & Space Forces Magazine) Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth stated: “This is not Iraq. This is not endless. Destroy the missile threat, destroy the navy, no nukes.”  (Air & Space Forces Magazine)