U.S. Central Command released a video on Thursday of the military successfully striking an Iranian drone ship similar in size to an aircraft carrier during World War II.
Hours earlier, the commander of CENTCOM, Adm. Brad Cooper, said the drone carrier was one of more than 30 Iranian navy vessels that the United States has sunk so far.
“In just the last few hours, we hit an Iranian drone carrier ship roughly the size of a World War II aircraft carrier, and as we speak, it’s on fire,” Cooper said at a Thursday afternoon press conference.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth signaled that the conflict will escalate further, noting Operation Epic Fury has “only just begun.” It’s expected to last up to four or five weeks, but the timing could change.
Iran’s military capabilities have been significantly destroyed in the past week, according to Cooper, who said that in addition to the naval losses, Iran’s ability to launch retaliatory airstrikes has been dramatically reduced.
“Ballistic missile attacks have decreased by 90% since Day One. Drone attacks have decreased by 83% since Day One,” Cooper said.
US WAR IN IRAN IS ‘FULL STEAM AHEAD’ WITH CONTINUED BOMBINGS
At a previous press conference on Wednesday, Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine revealed that a U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka in the first successful torpedo attack made by the U.S. since the end of World War II in 1945.
The Department of War released footage of the warship’s destruction. In the video, a giant wave of water is seen rising in the air after the torpedo delivered a devastating blow to the enemy vessel, which eventually capsized as seen in a photo released by the department.
