Trump 'not happy' with Iran's choice of Mojtaba Khamenei as new supreme leader

The hostage negotiating team working with the family of American hostage Kamran Hekmati tells Fox News he is now believed to be at Evin Prison.

Earlier Tuesday, the family and the negotiating team said they believed Hekmati was no longer at the notorious prison and that they did not know his whereabouts as Operation Epic Fury continues for an eleventh day.

Fox News is told by the hostage negotiating team working with the Hekmati family that they now believe Kamran Hekmati is at Evin Prison, where he has been wrongfully detained since May of last year.

Hekmati, a Persian Jew and a dual American-Iranian citizen, left Iran after the 1979 revolution but has returned several times without issue. In May 2025, Iranian authorities stopped him at the airport, seized his passport and forbade him from leaving the country.

Hekmati, a 70-year-old resident of Great Neck, New York, was eventually charged under an Iranian law that makes it illegal to have visited Israel within the past 10 years. Hekmati’s family maintains that his last trip to Israel was some 13 years ago for his son’s Bar Mitzvah.

At least six Americans are known to be wrongfully detained by the Iranian regime. Their fate during Operation Epic Fury has been largely unknown so far.

Fox News' Gillian Turner contributed to this post.

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told "Fox & Friends" on Friday that the U.S. must “create the conditions” for the Iranian regime to weaken and for their people to “get back the government they want.” 

"One day they just break... and you have to create the conditions for that. That's all any president can do. You create the conditions for that,” Pompeo said. 

"You stay at it. You remain determined. You don't let them regrow their capabilities. And when you do that, you ultimately weaken them and then over time, whether that's weeks or months or a couple of years, the Iranian people will get back the government they want,” Pompeo added. 

He also said “this regime is evil” following the announcement of Mojtaba Khamenei as Iran’s new supreme leader. 

"There's no such thing as a moderate in the Iranian regime. Anyone affiliated with it, who's been part of it, who's killed tens of thousands of their own people, is not someone who can lead Iran forward," Pompeo said. 

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese ‌said “help is here” for members of the Iranian women’s soccer team after granting them asylum for defying the regime. 

The move comes after the team refused to sing the Iranian anthem before one of their matches while visiting for a tournament when the U.S.-Israeli attacks against Iran began. In response, Iranian state television labelled the women “wartime traitors,” according to Reuters. 

“We are willing to provide assistance to other women in the team. Now I think that this is a very delicate situation and it is up to them, but we say to them if you want our help, help is here,” Albanese said on Monday. 

Trump said earlier that, “Australia is making a terrible humanitarian mistake by allowing the Iran National Woman’s Soccer team to be forced back to Iran, where they will most likely be killed.” 

“Don’t do it, Mr. Prime Minister, give ASYLUM. The U.S. will take them if you won’t,” Trump wrote Monday on a post on Truth Social. 

Former world champion Iranian wrestler Sardar Pashaei told "America's Newsroom" on Tuesday that it is a “very difficult” decision for the women. 

“Either you stay, or you go back home. This is not easy. Because you still have your family there and the Iranian regime has a long history of taking your family as a hostage,” he said.  

Fox News Digital’s Landon Mion contributed to this report. 

War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that Russia "should not be involved" in the escalating conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, even as analysts point to Russian military activity that aligns with reports Moscow may be aiding Tehran.

"The president maintains strong relationships with world leaders, which creates opportunities and options for us in very dynamic ways," Hegseth said when asked about President Donald Trump’s recent call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

But as it relates to the Middle East conflict, he added, Russia "should not be involved."

The administration’s messaging comes amid reports that Russia has provided information that could help Iran identify U.S. military assets in the Middle East, including warships and aircraft. Moscow has not publicly confirmed the claims. 

Intelligence assessments have reportedly said Russia provided Iran with information that could help identify the locations of American warships, aircraft and other military assets in the Middle East. Officials reportedly stressed there is no public evidence that Moscow is directing Iranian strikes, but said the information could assist Tehran’s targeting efforts.

The scope, timing and operational impact of that information have not been publicly detailed.

This post is an excerpt from an article by Morgan Phillips/

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Tuesday that his country isn’t looking for an “endless war” with Iran. 

"We will continue until the minute that we and our partners think that is appropriate to stop," he said, according to Reuters. 

"We are not looking for an endless war," Saar reportedly added. 

The foreign minister, when asked about what a victory against Iran would look like, said, “We want to remove, for the long-term, existential threats from Iran to Israel,” Reuters reported. 

The family of American hostage Kamran Hekmati, who has been wrongfully detained in Iran since May 2025, has been told that he is no longer in Evin Prison, Fox News has learned. The family does not know where Hekmati is as Operation Epic Fury enters an eleventh day.

“Our family has heard the reports that Kamran is no longer in Evin Prison," his family said in a statement to Fox News. "While we are hopeful, these reports are unconfirmed and the family has not heard from Kamran since learning of them. We are cautiously optimistic. Regardless, we don’t want to do anything that would put Kamran at any greater risk – whether inside Evin Prison or outside."

The family also directly appealed to the Trump administration.

"We are hopeful that the Trump Administration will make it a priority to secure the safety of Kamran and all the other Americans currently in Iran," the statement added.

Hekmati, a 70-year-old resident of Great Neck, New York, was sentenced to prison in Iran last summer while in the country to visit family. Iranian authorities charged Hekmati with “making a trip to Israel” 13 years before visiting Iran. Hekmati, a dual American-Iranian citizen and a Persian Jew, was born in Iran and traveled to Israel in 2012 to attend his son’s Bar Mitzvah.

At least six Americans are known to be wrongfully detained by the Iranian regime. Their fate during Operation Epic Fury has been largely unknown so far. The hostage team working with Hekmati's family told Fox News' Gillian Turner that Operation Epic Fury is one of great risk and great hope for these imprisoned Americans.

"What we're hearing are really just rumors at this point. There's a lot of swirl around what's happening at the prison and what's happened with prisoners in general," Kamran family representative Kieran Ramsey told Fox News.

"We saw reports that there were prisoners being used possibly as human shields. We heard reports of prisoners being moved out to different prisons elsewhere. And we've heard that the prison guards that were normally assigned to prison have been swapped out with special counter-terrorism police, whatever that is," Ramsey said.

"This is obviously a particularly dangerous time with military action underway. This is now essentially an act of war zone, right?" Ramsey added. "On top of that, we have Americans that are being held in a prison that has been previously targeted by the Israeli military. So there's that risk. On top that, you have Americans. And in the case of our client, Kamran Hekmati, he's an American and he's also of the Jewish faith. So our fear for reprisals from prison guards, from other prisoners is up there. And let's say they for some reason swung open the doors and everybody gets out. You're still getting out into an active war zone. So we have a lot of concerns right now."

Fox News' Danielle Wallace, Gillian Turner and Benjamin Weinthal contributed to this report.

One week into the war with Iran, U.S. officials say American and Israeli forces are moving toward "complete control" of Iranian airspace — clearing the way for deeper strikes, a broader target list and a conflict that appears to be expanding rather than winding down.

In briefings this week, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine described what they called near-uncontested airspace over key corridors, a shift that allows sustained bombing operations deep inside Iran. 

"We are winning with an overwhelming and unrelenting focus on our objectives," Hegseth said in a press briefing Tuesday morning. 

Caine said U.S. forces have now struck more than 5,000 targets in the first 10 days of operations, including dozens of deeply buried missile launchers hit with 2,000-pound penetrating bombs.

The message from Washington is one of overwhelming military advantage. 

But the broader picture, rising oil prices, expanding drone warfare, strikes on energy and civilian infrastructure, and regional spillover touching NATO territory, suggests a conflict that is growing in scope even as U.S. officials project confidence in its trajectory.

The Panama Canal administrator touted the canal’s logistical capabilities and plans to improve supply chain readiness as the Strait of Hormuz reaches a near standstill due to the U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran. 

Dr. Ricaurte Vásquez Morales, the authority administrator for the Panama Canal, sat down during an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital and noted the canal’s anticipated improvements as the world’s busiest commercial shipping route, the Strait of Hormuz, has seen little to no traffic over the past few days. 

"We have been through the years a major channel to move LNG from the U.S. to Asia," Morales told Fox News Digital. "Qatar usually supplies Asia, and after the Ukraine war, most of the American LNG has gone to Europe to replace the Russian LNG."

"What we see is that probably prices are going to go up for LNG, which means that the current cost of the inventory on the vessel is going to increase," he continued. "Fuel prices are going to go up."

Morales predicts that transit will increase in the Panama Canal as restraints in the Strait of Hormuz have continued to hold.

"The Panama Canal should get one or two transits a day, which is, in the old days, we had about three transits per day," Morales added. "So it's gonna come up a little bit and moving from the East Coast of the United States to Asia."

The Strait of Hormuz normally facilitates the transit of roughly 20–21 million barrels of oil per day. Since last Friday, only four cargo ships have successfully traveled through the strait, and one of those ships was carrying corn.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine told reporters at the Pentagon on Tuesday that Iran is "fighting, and I respect that."

"But I don't think they're more formidable than what we thought," he added about Tehran's defensive capabilities.

"Our strikes mean we've made significant progress in reducing the number of missile and drone attacks out of Iran," Caine also said. "Ballistic missile attacks continue to trend downward, 90% from where they've started, and one-way attack drones have decreased 83%, since the beginning of the operation."

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that Mojtaba Khamenei, the new supreme leader of Iran, "would be wise to heed the words of our president, which is to not pursue nuclear weapons and come out and state as such."

The remark comes after Trump told Fox News he’s “not happy” that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was chosen as Iran’s next supreme leader.  

“I don’t believe he can live in peace,” the president had said overnight to Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst. 

The Pentagon reiterated President Donald Trump's warning to Iran should the regime block the flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz and addressed the possibility of the U.S. escorting oil tanking through the strategic waterway.

At a press conference Tuesday, Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said the Pentagon is looking at a "range of options" when it comes to possibly escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.

"On the potential, if tasked to escort, we'll look at the range of options to set the military conditions to be able to do that. And then, like we always do with every potential mission, come to the secretary and the president with both," Caine said Tuesday.

"What are the resources required? What is the command and control required, and what are the risks and how do we mitigate those risks? So we're looking at a range of options there and we'll figure out how to solve problems as they come to us," he added.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth then referenced Trump's Monday night Truth Social Post. Trump wrote in part, “If Iran does anything that stops the flow of Oil within the Strait of Hormuz, they will be hit by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they have been hit thus far.”

"He goes on to say, 'death, fire and fury' will rain upon them," Hegseth said of Trump's post at Tuesday's press conference. "You've you've seen the Truth and read it. But he takes very seriously the condition of that strait."

"We have capabilities that no other nation on earth has, and we're certainly working with our energy partners across the administration to control for that," Hegseth added. "That's part of that scoping of this. The world needs to understand this doesn't have, this isn't intended to be nor is it something that will expand. We know exactly what we're attempting to achieve here, scoped properly. And the American people can count on that for sure."

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that Iran choosing to launch attacks at its Arab neighbors during Operation Epic Fury was a "big mistake" as those countries "instead decided to come to us."

"Big mistake by the Iranian regime to start targeting its neighbors right away, exposing who they are and what they're all about, indiscriminate targeting, flailing recklessly at the beginning. I can't say that we anticipated necessarily that's exactly how they would react, but we knew it was a possibility," Hegseth said in a briefing at the Pentagon.

"And I think it was a demonstration of the desperation of that regime then and that regime now, that they still think their pathway out is to try to alienate their Arab partners even more, who've instead decided to come to us and have been willing to go on the offense, have been given us access, spacing and overflight in a in a new partnership that will continue to remake the region the way that President Trump did with the Abraham Accords," he continued.

"I see in the media banners that say, you know, 'war expanding' or 'war spread,' it's actually the opposite. It's actually quite contained. And more allies or more of those countries are coming on side, recognizing that you can't live under a conventional umbrella with nuclear ambitions, with a radical regime like that," Hegseth also said.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said “No nation takes more precautions to ensure there's never targeting of civilians than the United States of America,” unlike Iran. 

Speaking Tuesday at the Pentagon, Hegseth added, “From the boat strikes in the Caribbean, where every single strike is assessed, to this campaign here, no nation in the history of warfare has ever attempted in every way possible to avoid civilian casualties.” 

“And frankly, that's a point that just isn't appreciated enough. Where things happen that that need to be investigated, we will investigate,” Hegseth continued. 

“But ultimately, unlike Iran, who targets civilians indiscriminately, who we've seen in the intel moving rocket launchers into civilian neighborhoods, near schools, near hospitals to try to prevent our ability to strike, that's how they operate. And then they set, you know, the targeting of drones and missiles toward civilian targets, hospitals, hotels, airports,” Hegseth added. 

“That's how terrorist regimes fight. They target civilians. We do not,” he said. “And I can tell you this, this administration and this Pentagon, focuses on that very, very closely.” 

Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine said Tuesday that Army Sgt. Benjamin N. Pennington, the seventh American service member to die while supporting Operation Epic Fury, was "a great one."

"When I met Ben's family last night, his mom, his dad and his sister, they showed me a picture, a drawing that Ben had made when he was in kindergarten," Caine said, recalling a moment during Pennington's dignified transfer Monday night at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.

"It was clear all the way back then that Ben wanted to do one thing in his life, and he wanted to serve his country and be a soldier. And to the Penningtons, just know how Ben was absolutely a great one," Caine added.

Pennington, a 26-year-old from Glendale, Kentucky, was injured in a strike on Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia and died days later from his injuries, according to officials.

Fox News Digital's Emma Bussey contributed to this report.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Tuesday at the Pentagon that the United States is "winning with an overwhelming and unrelenting focus" as Operation Epic Fury against Iran entered its 11th day.

"As President Trump declared yesterday, we'e crushing the enemy in an overwhelming display of technical skill and military force," Hegseth said. "We will not relent until the enemy is totally and decisively defeated. But we do so, we do so on our timeline and at our choosing."

"For example, today will be, yet again, our most intense day of strikes inside Iran. The most fighters, the most bombers, the most strikes, intelligence more refined and better than ever," Hegseth continued. "So that's on one hand. On the other hand, the last 24 hours have seen Iran fire the lowest number of missiles they've been capable of firing yet."

"The mullahs are desperate and scrambling," Hegseth also said. "Like the terrorist cowards they are, they fire missiles from schools and hospitals, deliberately targeting innocents, because they know their military is being systematically degraded and annihilated."

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that Russia "should not be involved" in the conflict with Iran.

Hegseth made the remark after President Donald Trump spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday.

"The president, as I've said before, maintains strong relationships with world leaders, which creates opportunities and options for us in very dynamic ways. So the president said it was a good call," Hegseth said.

"I was not on it, but those that were, said it was a strong call reaffirming, hopefully the opportunity for some for some peace in Russia-Ukraine and also, a recognition that as it pertains to this conflict, they should not be involved," Hegseth added.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Tuesday that "this is not 2003" when it comes to U.S. military action against Iran in Operation Epic Fury.

"This not endless nation building under those types of quagmires we saw under Bush or Obama," Hegseth said, referencing the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq.

"It's not even close. Our generation of soldier will not let that happen again," he continued. "And nor will this president, who very clearly ran against those kinds of never ending, nebulously scoped missions. Those days are dead. Instead, we're winning decisively with brutal efficiency, total air dominance, and an unbreakable will to accomplish the president's objectives."

"This fight, Operation Epic Fury. It hits home," Hegseth also said. "Our generation understands this fight. For 47 years, these barbaric savages and the Iranian regime have murdered our brothers in arms."

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine are set to hold a briefing at the Pentagon at 8 a.m. ET regarding Operation Epic Fury against Iran.

President Donald Trump told Fox News overnight that Operation Epic Fury – which began on Feb. 28 and caused the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – is “Way beyond expectation in terms of result this early.” 

The United Arab Emirates announced Tuesday that its air defenses are currently responding to and engaging with “incoming missile and drone threats from Iran.”

“The UAE's air defenses are currently engaging with missile threats and incoming drones originating from Iran, and the Ministry of Defense confirms that the sounds heard in scattered areas of the country are the result of the air defense systems intercepting ballistic missiles, as well as fighter jets intercepting drones and loitering munitions,” the UAE’s Ministry of Defense wrote on X. 

“Since the start of the Iranian attacks, 253 ballistic missiles have been detected. Of these, 233 were destroyed, 18 fell into the sea, and 2 landed within the country,” it said on Monday. 

“The Ministry of Defense affirmed that it remains fully prepared to deal with any threats and will respond firmly to any attempts to undermine the country’s security, ensuring the protection of its sovereignty, security and stability, and safeguarding its national interests and capabilities,” it added. 

U.S. Central Command said Tuesday that American forces, day and night, "continue to deliver overwhelming firepower" during Operation Epic Fury against Iran.

"The Iranian regime can try to hide their missile launchers, but U.S. forces won’t stop looking. When we find them, we’re taking them out," CENTCOM added in an overnight post on X, alongside a video that showed the destruction of multiple missile launchers.

Operation Epic Fury was launched against Iran on Feb. 28. 

CENTCOM said on Monday that over the first 10 days of the operation, more than 5,000 targets have been struck and over 50 Iranian ships have been damaged or destroyed.

Iran will face much stronger U.S. military strikes if it closes the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers, President Donald Trump said Monday.

In a post shared on Truth Social, Trump also said he prayed that it would never happen.

“If Iran does anything that stops the flow of Oil within the Strait of Hormuz, they will be hit by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they have been hit thus far,” Trump said.

“Additionally, we will take out easily destroyable targets that will make it virtually impossible for Iran to ever be built back, as a Nation, again — Death, Fire, and Fury will reign upon them — But I hope, and pray, that it does not happen!” he said.

“This is a gift from the United States of America to China, and all of those Nations that heavily use the Hormuz Strait,” he said before adding that hopefully, it is a “gesture that will be greatly appreciated.”

President Donald Trump told Fox News he’s “not happy” that Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was chosen as Iran’s next supreme leader.  

“I don’t believe he can live in peace,” the president told Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst. 

Trump said Operation Epic Fury – which began on Feb. 28 and caused the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – is “Way beyond expectation in terms of result this early.” 

“One of the things that surprised me most was when they attacked countries that were not attacking them,” Trump said about Iran’s response to the U.S. military action. 

“When we attacked them first, we knocked out 50% of their missiles. And if we didn't, it would have been a much harder fight,” Trump added. 

Operation Epic Fury was launched following negotiations between the U.S. and Iran about the future of the latter’s nuclear program. 

"No other President had the guts to do it... I don't want some President who hasn't got the courage in five years or in ten years to go in,” Trump said. 

Fox News’ Trey Yingst contributed to this report.