Brad Cooper, Deputy Commander of United States Central Command, announced on Thursday, May 14, that Iran’s missile, drone, and naval industries have been “90% weakened.”
Speaking during a U.S. Senate hearing, Cooper said the Iranian threat has been “significantly” reduced and claimed that “the country is no longer capable of threatening regional partners or the United States in any domain as it once did. They have been severely debilitated.”
Cooper added that in the 30 months leading up to the recent war, Iran-backed armed groups carried out more than 350 attacks against U.S. troops and diplomats. According to him, the attacks took place on average once every three days and led to the deaths of four American soldiers.
On February 28, the second round of U.S. and Israeli strikes against the Islamic Republic began. During the first day of the campaign, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, several of his family members, and multiple IRGC commanders were killed.
The war came to a halt after 40 days following the announcement of a ceasefire. However, after direct negotiations between Tehran and Washington in Pakistan failed to produce an agreement, the U.S. President ordered a naval blockade on Iran, which is still ongoing.
