Read Trump's full statement on U.S. "major combat operations" in Iran

President Trump announced on Saturday that the U.S. was undertaking "major combat operations in Iran," as Israel said it was launching a preemptive attack on the country. Read a transcript of Mr. Trump's full statement, which he shared in a video on his Truth Social network, below. In:

President Trump announced on Saturday that the U.S. was undertaking "major combat operations in Iran," as Israel said it was launching a preemptive attack on the country. Read a transcript of Mr. Trump's full statement, which he shared in a video on his Truth Social network, below.

"A short time ago, the United States military began major combat operations in Iran. Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime, a vicious group of very hard, terrible people. Its menacing activities directly endanger the United States, our troops our basis overseas and our allies throughout the world. For 47 years, the Iranian regime has chanted "Death to America" and waged an unending campaign of bloodshed and mass murder, targeting the United States, our troops and innocent people in many, many countries.

Among the regime's very first acts was to back a violent takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, holding dozens of American hostages for 444 days. In 1983, Iran's proxies carried out the Marine barracks bombing in Beirut that killed 241 American military personnel. In 2000, they knew and were probably involved with the attack on the USS Cole. Many died. Iranian forces killed and maimed hundreds of American service members in Iraq. The regime's proxies have continued to launch countless attacks against American forces stationed in the Middle East in recent years, as well as U.S. naval and commercial vessels in international shipping lanes. It's been mass terror, and we're not going to put up with it any longer.

From Lebanon to Yemen, and Syria to Iraq, the regime has armed, trained and funded terrorist militias that have soaked the earth with blood and guts. And it was Iran's proxy, Hamas, that launched the monstrous October 7 attacks on Israel, slaughtering more than 1000 innocent people, including 46 Americans, while taking 12 of our citizens hostage. It was brutal. Something like the world has never seen before.

Iran is the world's number one state sponsor of terror, and just recently killed tens of thousands of its own citizens on the street as they protested. It has always been the policy of the United States, in particular, my administration, that this terrorist regime can never have a nuclear weapon. I'll say it again. They can never have a nuclear weapon.