Trump says US 'totally destroying' Iran and to 'watch what happens' Friday

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced Friday that "today will be yet again the highest volume of strikes that America has put over the skies of Iran and Tehran."

"The number of sorties, the number of bomber pulses, the highest yet, ramping up and only up," he said. 

"Iran has no air defenses. Iran has no air force. Iran has no navy," Hegseth said earlier. "Their missiles, their missile launchers and drones being destroyed or shot out of the sky. Their missile volume is down 90%. Their one way attack drones yesterday, down 95%."

"And as the world is seeing, they are exercising sheer desperation in the Straits of Hormuz. It's something we're dealing with. We have been dealing with it and don't need to worry about it. We're on plan to defeat, destroy, disable all of their meaningful military capabilities at a pace the world has never seen before," Hegseth also said.

U.S. forces had destroyed 16 Iranian mine-laying vessels near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, according to U.S. Central Command. About a fifth of the world's oil flows through this key route.

Fox News Digital's Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Friday at the Pentagon that the American and Israeli militaries are "picking targets as they choose" thanks to aerial dominance over Iran.

"The United States is decimating the radical Iranian regime's military in a way the world has never seen before. Never before has a modern, capable military, which Iran used to have, been so quickly destroyed and made combat ineffective, devastated," Hegseth said. "We said it would not be a fair fight, and it has not been."

"Between our Air Force and that of the Israelis, over 15,000 enemy targets have been struck. That's well over 1,000 a day," Hegseth continued. "No other combination of countries in the world can do that."

"So today, as we speak, we fly over the top of Iran and Tehran. Fighters and bombers all day picking targets as they choose. As our intelligence gets better and better and more refined, looking up, the IRGC and Iranian regime sees only two things on the side of aircraft -- the Stars and Stripes and the Star of David," he added.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine are set to provide another update about Operation Epic Fury at 8 a.m. ET.

The U.S. military action, which was launched on Feb. 28, is now in its 14th day.

The Israel Defense Forces announced Friday another wave of airstrikes against the “Iranian terror regime” in multiple locations across the country. 

In Shiraz in southern Iran, the IDF said it struck “an underground facility for ballistic missile storage and production.” 

“A central base for [an] aerial defense array and several production sites for weapons, aerial defense systems, and ballistic missile components” were targeted in Iran’s capital of Tehran, it continued. 

In Ahvaz in western Iran, the IDF hit “Command centers, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Ground Corps, and a central command center of the Internal Security Forces.” 

Turkey’s defense ministry announced Friday that it intercepted a ballistic missile fired from Iran. 

“A ballistic munition launched from Iran and entering Turkish airspace was neutralized by NATO air and missile defense assets deployed in the Eastern Mediterranean,” it wrote on X. 

“All necessary measures are being taken decisively and without hesitation against any threat directed at our country’s territory and airspace. Consultations are being conducted with the relevant country to clarify all aspects of the incident,” it continued.  

The incident involving Turkey is the third of its kind since the beginning of Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 28. 

Four U.S. service members were killed when a KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq Thursday afternoon, officials confirmed.

A U.S. KC-135 refueling aircraft went down in western Iraq around 2 p.m. ET, U.S. Central Command confirmed early Friday. Four of the six crew members aboard the aircraft have been confirmed dead as rescue efforts continue.

The circumstances surrounding the incident remain under investigation. Officials said the loss of the aircraft was not the result of hostile fire or friendly fire.

The identities of the service members are being withheld pending notification of next of kin and will be released 24 hours after those notifications are complete.

The KC-135 Stratotanker is a US Air Force aircraft that refuels other planes midair, allowing them to fly longer missions without landing. It can also be configured for medical evacuations and surveillance, according to the Air Force.

Based on the Boeing 707 design, the KC-135 has been in service for more than 60 years, supporting the Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and allied aircraft. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

President Donald Trump said on Friday that the U.S. was "totally destroying" and "killing" Iran, warning to watch "what happens to these deranged scumbags today."

"We are totally destroying the terrorist regime of Iran, militarily, economically, and otherwise," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

"Iran’s Navy is gone, their Air Force is no longer, missiles, drones and everything else are being decimated, and their leaders have been wiped from the face of the earth," he continued. "We have unparalleled firepower, unlimited ammunition, and plenty of time."

Trump also appeared to signal a significant action later on Friday, writing, "Watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today."

"They’ve been killing innocent people all over the world for 47 years, and now I, as the 47th President of the United States of America, am killing them. What a great honor it is to do so!" the president said.