Hegseth: US is 'accelerating, not decelerating' — operation reaching 1,000 miles

In an early morning statement and CBS interview, Defense Secretary Hegseth said: 'We are accelerating, not decelerating. The strikes are reaching 1,000 miles inside Iran. The US military is just getting started. Every day we degrade their capability, and every day they have less ability to threaten our allies.' The '1,000 miles' claim is significant — it suggests strikes are hitting sites in eastern Iran (Khorasan province, near Mashhad) and potentially further — well beyond the core Tehran/Isfahan/Natanz triangle. Hegseth's 'just getting started' language directly contradicts Trump's original '30 days or less' framing and will fuel both Congressional concern and international alarm. CBS notes that strike packages have been expanding daily — Day 6 target lists are reportedly larger than Day 1. The Pentagon declined to specify which sites in eastern Iran have been targeted.