Trump Says US Will Continue Iran Strikes, Claims Tehran Would Need Decades to Rebuild

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United States would continue its military campaign against Iran, claiming Tehran would need more than two decades to recover from the damage already inflicted.

"If we left right now, it would take Iran 20, 25 years to rebuild. Okay, and we're not finished at all... we're not leaving right now," Trump told reporters during a meeting at the White House with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.

Trump's remarks come as the United States and Iran remain locked in a full-scale military conflict that has intensified following the collapse of a brief June ceasefire. The confrontation has expanded beyond the Strait of Hormuz into a wider regional war involving Gulf states, proxy groups, and mounting economic disruption.

The U.S. military, under the coordination of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), has completed its tenth consecutive night of airstrikes inside Iran. The latest operations targeted command centers, radar systems, air defense batteries, and drone launch sites in Shiraz, Chabahar, and Bandar Abbas.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has responded with waves of drones and missiles targeting U.S. regional assets. Recent attacks struck power grids and desalination facilities in Kuwait, accommodation facilities at Bahrain's Sheikh Isa Air Base, and military infrastructure in Jordan.

The conflict has also led to rising American casualties. According to U.S. officials, 17 American service members have been killed since the broader conflict began on Feb. 28. Trump has warned Tehran that it would pay "many times over" for every U.S. soldier killed and has ordered additional fighter aircraft to deploy to West Asia.

The Pentagon has also reported that nearly 100 U.S. troops have suffered combat-related injuries since July 7, the majority of them diagnosed with minor concussions.