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US Pentagon claims to have severely damaged Iranian capabilities, promises to increase attacks

4th March 2026 - 17:12 GMT | by Flavia Camargos Pereira in Kansas City, Missouri

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USS Delbert D Black fires a Tomahawk in support of Operation Epic Fury. (Photo: US Navy)

US military authorities claim to have sunk 20 Iranian vessels and destroyed Tehran’s Air Force, with the Pentagon making plans to send additional assets to the region.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has announced on 4 March that the US forces have inflicted serious damage that reduces Iran’s ability to attack Washington’s bases and its allies’ territories in the Middle East. He has also promised to increase pressure on Tehran by sending more forces, equipment and ammunition to Operation Epic Fury.

“The Iranian Air Force is no more. Built from 1996, destroyed in 2026. The Iranian Navy rests at the bottom of the Persian Gulf,” Hegseth claimed.

According to the US Department of Defense (DoD), 20 Iranian Navy vessels were destroyed, including a frigate sunk in international waters

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Flavia Camargos Pereira

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Flavia Camargos Pereira


Flavia Camargos Pereira is a North America editor at Shephard Media. She joined the company …

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