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After US President Donald Trump and Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu started their war on Iran on February 28, constant strikes have shaken the country. Now, on March 3, the US has switched its focus to the Iranian-funded group Hezbollah, based in Lebanon. Overnight on March 3, the US and Israel conducted dozens of airstrikes on Iran and Lebanon, with Israel moving additional troops to the southern Lebanese border. Even with hundreds killed in Iran's capital, Tehran, according to sources on the ground, Iranians are ‘simply living their lives'.
Additional strikes on Iran
On March 3, Donald Trump announced that the US military had completely crippled Iran's IRGC. According to Trump, Iran's navy and other military forces have been ‘knocked out'. Trump claimed the US eliminated Iran's air detection, and that Iran now has ‘no detection facilities at all'. Trump also claimed that US strikes early on March 3 had killed Iran's new (and unannounced) leader. Trump claimed that the US had killed Iran's brand-new administration, and after they eliminate the third administration, the US might ‘not know them at all'. After the comment, Trump alluded to the US supporting ‘someone from within' Iran to take over as Supreme Leader. Unfortunately, Trump also said that the US has no idea who it will choose to lead Iran.
Meeting with German Chancellor
In a meeting with the German Chancellor on March 3, Donald Trump gave updates to the public on US actions in Iran. According to the President, the US and Israel have ‘knocked out' Iran's navy, air force, air defences, and military as a whole. Trump praised the US military, calling it ‘amazing' and lauding the speed at which it has reportedly completely crippled Iran's military. Trump also finally gave a clear answer as to why he attacked Iran. After the initial attacks on February 28, Trump gave four different reasons for starting the war, and top US officials gave another two. Now, Trump has decided on a single answer: he believed Iran was going to attack Israel, then the United States.
Trump also went on a few tangents during the forty-minute meeting. Trump criticized both Spain and the United Kingdom for refusing to let American forces operate out of airbases. Trump claimed that he will cut off all trade and dealings with Spain in response, and he could do so as early as March 3. Trump repeatedly criticized the UK, claiming that ‘this is not Winston Churchill's England'.
Reasons for strikes
Initially, Donald Trump gave four reasons for his attack on Iran. First was the nuclear excuse. Trump claimed that Iran was just days away from assembling a usable nuclear warhead (a claim the US and Israel have been making since 1995). Trump used the same reason as justification for operation Midnight Hammer in June 2025, which saw the US strike Iranian ‘nuclear' facilities across the country. Trump also claimed on February 28 that the US needed to attack Iran in order to destroy the country's missile capabilities and annihilate its navy program. Trump also cited his desire to end Iran's funding of global terrorist organizations like Hezbollah.
Now, Donald Trump has found an answer he likes better: US protection. According to Trump, he forced Israel's hand to attack Iran. Trump was asked whether Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu forced the US's hand to join the conflict, and Trump vehemently refuted the theory, instead claiming that he forced Netanyahu's hand to start the war. According to Trump, he believed wholeheartedly that Iran was either going to attack the US and Israel or attempt to take his life in the coming week. Trump has claimed that Iran has made two attempts on his life already. A senior White House executive stated that Trump's fear of assassination was ‘just one' of the reasons he needed to eliminate Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
