The U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran has entered a dangerous new phase. After a week of devastating air strikes that crippled Tehran’s air defenses, sank its navy, and killed its Supreme Leader, the Pentagon announced on March 5 that Operation Epic Fury is now shifting to Phase 2 — systematically dismantling Iran’s missile production industrial base so the regime can never rebuild.
“We’re not just hitting what they have. We’re destroying their ability to rebuild,” CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper declared during a joint press conference with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa on Thursday. “As we transition to the next phase of this operation, we will systematically dismantle Iran’s missile production capability for the future.”
The message from the Pentagon is unmistakable: this war is far from over, and it’s about to get significantly more intense.
Phase 1: The Numbers Are Staggering
Before diving into what comes next, the scale of what the combined U.S.-Israeli force has already accomplished in just one week is extraordinary by any historical measure.
According to Admiral Cooper’s briefing, America’s bomber force alone hit nearly 200 targets in and around Tehran in the last 72 hours. The broader campaign statistics paint an even more dramatic picture:
- 30 Iranian naval vessels destroyed, effectively wiping out the Iranian Navy
- Iran’s missile launch capability reduced by 90% from pre-war levels
- Iranian air defenses suppressed across the country
- IRGC command and control facilities demolished
- Military airfields cratered and rendered inoperable
- An Iranian drone carrier — roughly the size of a WWII aircraft carrier — hit and left burning
The U.S. submarine fleet also made headlines this week when a Navy sub torpedoed the IRIS Dena, an Iranian Moudge-class frigate, in the Indian Ocean on March 4 — a dramatic demonstration of American naval superiority.
CENTCOM declared it now “controls the skies” over Iran, launching strikes “from seabed to space and cyberspace” around the clock.
Phase 2: Destroying the Factories
The shift to Phase 2 marks a critical strategic escalation. While the first phase focused on suppressing Iran’s ability to fight back — neutralizing air defenses, decapitating command structures, and limiting retaliatory missile and drone launches — the second phase is about ensuring Iran can never threaten the region again.
Targets now include:
- Missile production facilities — the factories that build Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal
- Deep underground bunkers storing ballistic missiles and launch equipment
- Defense industrial infrastructure — supply chains, component manufacturing, and assembly plants
- Space launch capabilities — dual-use facilities that support both satellite and ICBM programs
“The amount of firepower over Iran and over Tehran is about to surge dramatically,” Hegseth warned. The Pentagon chief, who traveled to CENTCOM headquarters on Thursday for operational updates, made clear that the campaign would continue for weeks.
B-2 stealth bombers have already been employed to strike deeply buried Iranian launch sites — targets that conventional aircraft cannot reach. The debut of long-range Precision Strike Missiles in combat also signals that the U.S. military is using this conflict to field-test next-generation weapons systems.
50 Israeli Jets Hit Tehran’s Underground ‘Leadership Complex’
While the U.S. ramps up its industrial targeting campaign, Israel is pursuing its own devastating parallel operation — codenamed Operation Roaring Lion.
On the night of March 5-6, the Israeli Defense Forces launched what they called a “broad-scale” assault on Tehran. Approximately 50 Israeli Air Force fighter jets dropped around 100 bombs on what the IDF described as an underground “leadership complex” located beneath Tehran, spread across multiple streets with numerous entry points.
Massive explosions hit several locations across the Iranian capital overnight, including residential areas and the vicinity of Tehran University. A military academy was also among the locations struck. The sky over Tehran was lit up with explosions as smoke engulfed entire city blocks.
Simultaneously, Israel unleashed its heaviest bombardment of Beirut’s southern suburbs since the 2024 war with Hezbollah. The Dahiya district — a densely populated commercial and residential area that serves as a Hezbollah stronghold — came under intense attack, forcing thousands to flee in the middle of the night.
Iran Fights Back — But Its Punch Is Weakening
Iran has not gone quietly. According to Fars News Agency, Tehran has fired over 500 ballistic and naval missiles and nearly 2,000 drones since the conflict began on February 28. Roughly 40% were aimed at Israel, while 60% targeted U.S. military positions in the Gulf.
On the morning of March 6, after an 11-hour lull, air-raid sirens wailed across Tel Aviv as Iran launched a fresh salvo of Kheibar and Fattah ballistic missiles toward Israel. Explosions were heard over the city, though no casualties were reported — Israel’s multi-layered missile defense systems continue to perform remarkably well.
But the Pentagon says Iran’s retaliatory capacity is collapsing. Missile launches have decreased significantly, and CENTCOM estimates that 90% of Iran’s pre-war missile capability has been destroyed. The Iranian military is burning through its remaining stockpile faster than it can replenish — which is exactly why Phase 2’s focus on production facilities is so strategically devastating.
Iran also struck a U.S. oil tanker in the Persian Gulf and launched drone attacks against Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave and targets in Turkey — dramatically widening the conflict’s geographic footprint.
The War Spills Across Borders
What began as a targeted U.S.-Israeli operation against Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure has now spread across more than a dozen countries, creating a cascading regional crisis.
Azerbaijan has accused Iran of “terrorist acts” after drone strikes hit an airport in the Nakhchivan exclave, injuring four people. President Ilham Aliyev vowed “retaliatory measures,” and analysts warn that Iran could target the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline — which carries about 30-40% of Israel’s oil imports and runs through Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey.
Turkey condemned the Iranian strikes on Azerbaijani territory, raising the specter of NATO involvement if the conflict continues to spread.
Lebanon is once again a war zone, with Israel hammering Hezbollah positions in Beirut and ordering mass evacuations. Over 120 people have been killed in Lebanon since the campaign began.
Qatar has warned that Gulf energy exports could halt within weeks if the conflict continues, sending shockwaves through global oil markets.
The United Nations refugee agency on March 6 officially declared the crisis a “major humanitarian emergency,” stressing the need for immediate international response.
The Human Cost
According to CNN, citing state media from both countries, U.S.-Israeli strikes have killed more than 1,200 people in Iran and more than 120 in Lebanon since February 28.
The United States has suffered its own losses. Six American service members have been confirmed killed — all in a single Iranian airstrike on a base in Kuwait. Four of the victims have been identified as members of the 103rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa.
Meanwhile, thousands of Americans remain stranded across the Middle East as commercial flights are grounded throughout the region. The State Department has been heavily criticized for its slow response, though charter flights began returning U.S. citizens on March 5. Multiple governors — including California’s Gavin Newsom, New York’s Kathy Hochul, and Illinois’ JB Pritzker — have been pressing the administration for updates as panicked constituents flood their offices with calls.
Congress Gives the Green Light
Any hopes of congressional restraint on the military campaign evaporated this week. Both the Senate and the House voted to reject war powers resolutions that would have limited Trump’s authority to continue strikes on Iran. Republican majorities in both chambers sided firmly with the administration.
With full congressional backing secured, the White House has signaled that Operation Epic Fury will continue for as long as necessary. The campaign has already cost an estimated $3.7 billion in its first 100 hours, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), with daily costs running between $900 million and $1 billion.
There are currently 50,000 U.S. troops deployed in the region, and Pentagon officials have indicated that number could grow.
What Comes Next
The trajectory of this conflict is becoming clearer — and it points toward a prolonged campaign. The regime change objective that both the U.S. and Israel have signaled means this is not a limited strike operation. It’s a comprehensive military effort to reshape the Middle East’s power structure.
Iran’s foreign minister has flatly rejected any negotiations or ceasefire requests. Trump has stated publicly that he wants to be involved in choosing Iran’s next leader — a statement that signals the administration views this as a generational realignment, not a punitive operation.
Kurdish fighters have already begun cross-border incursions into Iran, and the IDF has declared a “next stage” of its own operation. The combination of air supremacy, naval dominance, and ground force positioning suggests the coalition is prepared for a sustained campaign.
As Phase 2 begins and the bombing intensifies, the world watches a conflict that is redrawing the map of the Middle East in real time. The only certainty is that the most consequential military operation since the 2003 invasion of Iraq is far from over.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as the situation evolves.