Trump: We have dealt heavy blows to Iran and we are not done yet

SadaNews - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the United States has dealt heavy blows to Iran and we are not done yet.

Trump added to reporters at the White House that he is not concerned about any Iran-backed attacks within the United States.

He continued, "I believe oil companies should use the Strait of Hormuz," pointing out that all Iranian ships that could lay mines in the Strait of Hormuz have been destroyed, and he refused to link the victory in Iran to the removal of Mojtaba Khamenei, saying, "I don't want to comment."

Trump indicated that the war with Iran will end soon as there is practically nothing left to target.

He added during the five-minute call with Axios: "Some simple matters... whenever you want to end them, they will end."

The outlet noted that Trump publicly indicated that his operation has largely achieved its goals, but U.S. and Israeli officials confirmed that the U.S. president has not yet issued any internal directive regarding when to cease fighting.

Trump told the site: "The war is going well. We are ahead of schedule by a lot. We have inflicted more damage than we expected, even during the original six-week period."

He explained: "They were greedy for the rest of the Middle East. They are paying the price for 47 years of death and destruction they have caused. This is the penalty. They will not get away with it so easily."

Trump: We need to get rid of Hezbollah and I don't want to talk about Mojtaba Khamenei

U.S. President Donald Trump warned that the United States is capable of inflicting further major damage on Iranian infrastructure, mentioning that Washington can "destroy it within an hour."

When asked during his remarks to reporters at the White House on Wednesday whether he could declare victory if the supreme leadership in Iran remained with the leader's son, he responded, "I don't want to comment on that. I don't want to comment." Trump had previously stated that the choice of Mojtaba Khamenei as the Supreme Leader of Iran was "unacceptable."

The U.S. president referred to "We love Lebanon and the Lebanese people, and we need to get rid of Hezbollah."

Trump said about what should be done militarily to end the war with Iran: "more of the same," referring to the continuation of current military operations.

Trump noted what he described as losses suffered by Iran in its naval forces, air force, air defense systems, and military leadership, adding that there are other targets that have not yet been struck.

He said, "We leave some things, and if we decide to hit them - or we can hit them this afternoon, even within an hour, they literally will not be able to rebuild that country again."

The U.S. president later confirmed that military operations against Iran are not over yet, stating, "We have hit them harder than almost any country in history, and we are not done yet."

In a different context, Trump said he was unaware of a report published by The New York Times indicating that an ongoing military investigation preliminarily concluded that the U.S. may be responsible for a deadly strike that targeted a school in southern Iran. When CNN reporter Kristen Holmes asked him about the report and whether he accepted responsibility, Trump replied, "I know nothing about that." Trump had previously suggested that Iran itself might be responsible for the strike, but later admitted that he does not have enough information about the incident.

The New York Times reported that old targeting data may have contributed to the erroneous missile strike.

For her part, White House spokeswoman Carolyn Levitt told CNN that the investigation is still ongoing, adding that the paper itself mentioned in its report that the results are not yet conclusive. According to Iranian state media, the attack resulted in the deaths of 168 children and 14 teachers.