Pentagon chief announces unprecedented strikes on Iran

The U.S. military remains ready to deliver strikes against Iranian territory at a level "not seen since World War 2," Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has stated.

"The Department of War was ready to go - and remains ready [to strike] - at levels not seen since World War 2. Locked and loaded," Hegseth said.

Earlier, President Donald Trump said that the U.S. and Iran would begin negotiations on a peace agreement on August 3, adding that he had agreed to call off a planned major strike against the Islamic Republic in order to secure an agreement with Tehran.

According to the president, Iran and several Middle Eastern countries asked Washington to refrain from carrying out the attack because the parties had already outlined the framework of a future agreement. Trump said the agreement should include the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the elimination of Iran’s nuclear threat.