“Major Combat Operations”: Trump Addresses the Nation as US Strikes Iran

President Donald Trump has officially addressed the nation, confirming that the United States military, in direct coordination with the State of Israel, is currently executing “major combat operations” against the Islamic Republic of Iran. The historic announcement confirms the dramatic escalation of a weeks-long standoff into a full-scale regional war.
The National Address
Speaking to the American public as explosions rocked multiple Iranian cities on Saturday morning, President Trump outlined the core justification for the massive, ongoing air campaign. Citing the total collapse of the Geneva nuclear talks and intelligence regarding Iran’s intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) advancements, the President stated that the preemptive strikes were an unavoidable measure of national defense.
“Moments ago, I ordered the United States Armed Forces to begin major combat operations in Iran,” Trump declared. “Our objective is clear and absolute: we are eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime to defend the American homeland and our allies.”
Defining the Mission
While previous administrations have frequently relied on limited, proportional responses, Trump explicitly outlined a maximalist military objective. He confirmed that the U.S. target bank is not limited to a handful of facilities, but encompasses the systemic dismantling of Iran’s offensive and nuclear capabilities:
* The Nuclear Infrastructure: The total destruction of heavily fortified enrichment sites, ending the regime’s atomic ambitions permanently.
* The Missile Industry: A systematic campaign to obliterate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ (IRGC) ballistic missile manufacturing plants, solid-fuel mixing facilities, and subterranean launch silos.
* The IRGC Navy: The President explicitly vowed to “annihilate” Iranian naval and fast-attack assets in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz to ensure the free flow of global oil commerce.
Targeting the Regime’s Core
The sheer kinetic scope of the operation suggests the U.S. and Israel are executing a sweeping decapitation strategy. Initial intelligence and reports from the ground in Tehran confirm that precision bunker-busters have struck the northern Seyyed Khandan district, which houses the Iranian Ministry of Defense, as well as locations alarmingly close to the central offices of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
While the White House has previously danced around the concept of regime change, the reality of the target list—coupled with the ongoing, massive anti-government student protests across Iran—indicates that Washington is actively applying enough kinetic pressure to fatally fracture the Ayatollahs’ grip on power.
A Region on Lockdown
The President’s announcement has triggered immediate global shockwaves. Oil markets have instantly spiked, and commercial aviation across the Middle East has ground to a complete halt. Following the address, Iranian, Israeli, and several neighboring airspaces were definitively closed to all civilian traffic, as U.S. CENTCOM braces for the inevitable waves of ballistic missile and proxy retaliation.