President Donald Trump is reviewing a significantly expanded menu of military options against Iran, moving beyond retaliatory measures for the recent crackdown to include potential strikes on the regime’s most sensitive strategic assets. According to a report by The New York Times, the Pentagon has presented the White House with scenarios that now include direct targeting of Iran’s nuclear facilities and ballistic missile infrastructure.
This escalation in planning represents a dramatic shift in the administration’s posture. While previous discussions focused on punishing the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) for the “Tehran Massacre” and the killing of over 500 protesters, the inclusion of nuclear sites suggests the U.S. is considering a decapitation strike against the regime’s long-term strategic capabilities.
Pentagon planners are reportedly weighing a spectrum of operations. On the lower end, these include crippling cyber-attacks aimed at Iran’s command-and-control networks and limited precision strikes on security bases. On the higher end, the options involve a “sustained air campaign” designed to degrade the regime’s ability to project power regionally or threaten U.S. allies.
Officially, U.S. spokespersons continue to stress that diplomacy remains the preferred path, echoing the sentiments of Vice President JD Vance’s faction within the White House. However, defense analysts interpret the leak of these expanded options as a deliberate message to Tehran: Washington is seeking leverage before any potential talks, not after.
The timing is critical. With the Iranian regime currently besieged by a nationwide uprising and struggling to maintain control over its own cities, the threat of an external military hammer blow is intended to force a choice. By putting nuclear facilities on the target list, Trump is signaling that the cost of continued defiance—both domestic and international—could be the total erasure of the Islamic Republic’s decades-long investment in atomic power.
Footage Charlie Kirk has been shot
Charlie Kirk has been shot
