CENTCOM chief: US ready to strike Iran if Trump orders

Shafaq News/ On Tuesday, CENTCOM Commander General Michael Kurilla announced that the United States is prepared to respond with “overwhelming force” to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, if ordered to do so by President Donald Trump.

In an address to the Senate Armed Services Committee, Kurilla described the current moment as a “strategic opportunity” to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear-armed state, confirming that a broad set of plans had been presented to both the president and the secretary of defense to address the Iranian nuclear program.

In his final testimony before leaving office, Kurilla labeled Iran’s response to the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attack on Israel as a turning point, accusing it of “operationalizing its entire proxy network and arsenal of standoff capabilities” to advance long-standing strategic aims. He noted that the network includes groups such as Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, which have suffered major setbacks in recent months.

On Yemen, he considered the Houthis as a deeply entrenched force aligned with Tehran, responsible for more than 300 attacks targeting Israeli assets and international shipping lanes, adding that CENTCOM responded with targeted military operations that significantly degraded the group’s capabilities, forcing the Houthis to halt maritime assaults.