Inside the Iran battle – the staggering price to date and the way lengthy brutal battle might final
Three weeks into the conflict with Iran and Donald Trump is seemingly touting military dominance and even a potential victory. However the cost in money and lives keeps on mounting at a horrifying rate.
On Sunday (March 16) the US President said that his nation was “decimating” Iran. One of his advisors also said the war could last up to six weeks.
And Kevin Hassett, who is the National Economic Council Director, told CBS’ Face the Nation that the war might last another month.
Hassett also said the US has already spent $12 billion (£9 billion) on the war. He explained: “One of the things that we’ve been briefed on almost every day is what’s going on and what the president is being briefed on with regard to the Iran war.”
He further shared: “As of yesterday, the message was that the Department of War believed that it would take four to six weeks to complete the mission and that we’re ahead of schedule. So we are a couple of weeks in and I think that should give you some clarity about when we expect that the president will decide that we’ve achieved his objectives.”
Trump has also reportedly accused Iran’s leaders of lying about their victories. He wrote on Truth Social: “Iran has long been known as a Master of Media Manipulation and Public Relations.”
He continued: “They are militarily ineffective and weak, but are really good at ‘feeding’ the very appreciative Fake News Media false information. Now AI has become another Disinformation weapon that Iran uses, quite well, considering they are being annihilated by the day.
“They show phony ‘Kamikaze Boats’ shooting at various Ships at Sea, which looks wonderful, powerful and vicious, but those Boats don’t exist – It’s all false information to show how ‘tough’ their already defeated Military is!”
Trump concluded: “The fact is, Iran is being decimated, and the only battles they ‘win’ are those they create through AI and are distributed by Corrupt Media Outlets.”
So far, 13 US soldiers have died in Operation Epic Fury in Iran, the Daily Mail reported. Six people died this week when a US KC-135 plane crashed in western Iraq.
Furthermore, since the launch of the joint US-Israeli military campaign, the Iranian population has been plunged into an unprecedented humanitarian and economic crisis. The operation has reportedly already left a devastating mark on the country’s civilians and infrastructure.
Casualties have mounted rapidly. According to the Iranian Health Ministry, at least 1,348 civilians have been killed as of March 16, including dozens of children in a widely reported strike on a primary school in southern Iran.
Over 10,000 people have reportedly been wounded, while mass displacement has seen between 3.2 million and 4 million Iranians fleeing their homes, many seeking refuge in rural areas to escape the ongoing bombardment. The conflict has also brought Iran’s healthcare system to the brink of collapse.
The World Health Organization has confirmed 18 attacks on medical facilities, with at least 25 hospitals damaged and nine rendered completely inoperable. These strikes, combined with targeted attacks on energy infrastructure, have resulted in widespread power outages and severely limited access to clean water and communications.
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