The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine said on Wednesday (March 4) that Iran was firing fewer missiles as the war progressed and added that U.S. strikes will now expand inland inside Iran. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also added on Wednesday the United States was winning in the war against Iran and that the U.S. military could fight as long as needed. Hegseth also said the U.S. military said on Wednesday that it killed an Iranian official who headed a unit behind an alleged assassination plot against President Donald Trump but that the target was not the initial focus of the war.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

1. CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF, GENERAL DAN CAINE, DURING MEDIA BRIEFING

2. (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF, GENERAL DAN CAINE, SAYING:

"Iran's theater ballistic missile shots fired are down 86% from the first day of fighting, with a 23% decrease just in the last 24 hours. And there one way attack drone shots are down 73% from the opening days."

3. BRIEFING IN PROGRESS

4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF, GENERAL DAN CAINE, SAYING:

"This progress has allowed CENTCOM to establish localized air superiority across the southern flank of the Iranian coast and penetrate their defenses with overwhelming precision and firepower. We will now begin to expand inland, striking progressively deeper into Iranian territory and creating additional freedom of maneuver for U.S. forces."

5. BRIEFING IN PROGRESS

6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF, GENERAL DAN CAINE, SAYING:

"As a result of this, CENTCOM is now shifting in day four already from large deliberate strike packages using standoff munitions that range outside an enemy's ability to shoot at us now in to stand in precision strikes overhead Iran. As the secretary said, this is a point of munitions transition from standoff munitions to stand in munitions like joint direct attack munitions, which are GPS aided free fall weapons and other things like hellfires, etc."

7. BRIEFING IN PROGRESS

8. (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF, GENERAL DAN CAINE, SAYING:

"Jordanian air defense crews recently intercepted a cluster of Iranian one way attack drones headed to Oman. Bahrain's air defense forces shot down an inbound drone, approaching Manama's maritime infrastructure, protecting both their population and critical shipping lanes. Saudi patriot battery stopped a salvo of ballistic missiles aimed at energy facilities near Dhahran. The UAE neutralized multiple drones targeting Abu Dhabi's industrial zone, demonstrating speed and precision. And Qatar, Qatari fighters for the first time have shot down two Iranian bombers that were enroute to their location."

9. BRIEFING IN PROGRESS

10. (SOUNDBITE) (English) PENTAGON CHIEF, PETE HEGSETH, SAYING:

"We've known for a long time that Iran had intentions on trying to kill President Trump and or other U.S. officials. And while that was not the focus of the effort by any stretch of the imagination, in fact, never raised by the president or anybody else, I ensured, others ensured that those who were responsible for that were eventually part of the target list. It wasn't the beginning of the effort, we were focused on missiles and launchers, and that's the focus. But ultimately, if we had the opportunity to get at those who are trying to get out American specifically, we would. And so we eventually had the opportunity to do that from the air."

11. BRIEFING IN PROGRESS

12. (SOUNDBITE) (English) U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE, PETE HEGSETH, SAYING:

"Iran cannot outlast us. We're going to ensure, through violence of action and our offensive capabilities and our defensive capabilities, as I said, that we set the tone and the tempo of this fight. That's why stories and speculation about different things that try to make it look like we're limited in what we can do. The only limits we have in this is President Trump's desire to achieve specific effects on behalf of the American people. And that's why we don't talk about, we can say four weeks, but it could be six, it could be eight, it could be three. Ultimately, we set the pace and the tempo. The enemy is off balance. So we're going to keep him off balance. And we know their ability to shoot versus our ability to defend that difference gets wider and wider every day. Our defense gets better, their offensive capabilities diminish. As we are going into ammunitions that we, as we said, have tens of thousands of, and can drop unlimited supplies on, with even more effects than the stand off emissions we have now, which is why when we say the throttle is going up, the throttle is going up and it's going to stay on high." / OFFICIALS LEAVING BRIEFING