Top US admiral says strikes severely degraded Iran's military and defence
US Navy Admiral Brad Cooper said the US-Israeli strikes severely degraded Iran's military and defence infrastructure. Cooper answered lawmakers' questions during a session on Capitol Hill.
US Navy Admiral Brad Cooper told a Capitol Hill hearing that the strikes carried out by the United States and Israel had significantly degraded Iran's military and air defence infrastructure. Cooper said measurable declines had been recorded in Tehran's missile launchers, radar systems and submarine-supported operations capabilities.
Lawmakers pressed for clearer information about the consequences of the war. Democratic members raised the scale of civilian casualties and the question of accountability for the operations. Republican members asked whether further strike plans were on the table. Cooper said he could not share details in open session, but offered to brief members in a closed-door committee setting.
Iran said US assessments of military losses had been exaggerated by Washington. United Nations reports stress that the humanitarian situation in the region is deteriorating quickly. Cooper's testimony reignited debate over the White House stance on the diplomatic track with Tehran and the conditions for any future de-escalation in the Middle East.
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