The US will "hit Iran hard tonight and tomorrow," US President Donald Trump said in a radio interview on the Hugh Hewitt show on Monday evening.
"We’re going to hit them very hard tonight, and we’re going to hit them hard tomorrow. And there’s not a damn thing they can do about it. They have nothing," he said.
Shortly after, US CENTCOM announced on X/Twitter that "US Central Command began launching the third consecutive night of strikes against Iran, at the Commander in Chief's direction."
Iranian semi-official news agency, Mehr, has since reported explosions in southern Iranian cities of Kish Island, Sirik Island, Qeshm Island, Bushehr, and Bandar Abbas.
Trump says US could target Iranian nuclear sites
Speaking about Iran's nuclear power, Trump explained that Pickaxe Mountain, a highly fortified nuclear site one mile south of the Natanz nuclear complex in Iran, "could be the target of a nice, big, fat, shot."
He added that Iran "is not doing well with its nuclear situation. Every time we hear about it, we blow it up. But we'll probably give Pickaxe a shot relatively soon."
Pickaxe Mountain is a heavily fortified site that hosts two deeply buried tunnel complexes that experts assess as beyond the reach of the most powerful bunker buster bombs in the US arsenal.
Trump also said that "the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was a test, and Tehran didn't honor it," adding that current US military action in Iran could last for two to three weeks.
Despite the escalation, Trump claimed a deal could still be reached, saying "they have been stalling for 47 years, but I still think an agreement is possible."
The president said that he "was not interested in answering" a question about whether Israel will intervene in the strikes tonight. He added that he has a good relationship with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and stated that without the US, "Israel would not be around today."
This is a developing story.