President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that it was his decision to dub the operation in Iran “Epic Fury” after he was provided a list of options.
Speaking at an event in Kentucky, Trump said military officials gave him a list of 20 possible names for the military strikes, which were conducted jointly with Israel on Feb. 28 and targeted Iranian leadership and infrastructure.
“They gave me a list of names, [the general said], ‘You could pick the name you like, sir,” Trump said. “I said, ‘The name of what?’ ‘The name of the attack on Iran,’ and they gave me, like, 20 names, and I’m, like, falling asleep. I didn’t like any of them. Then I see ‘Epic Fury.’ I said, ‘I like that name.’”
The president added that the United States has already won the war in Iran, citing the destruction of the country’s defense operations, including its navy.
“You never like to say too early you won,” Trump said. “We won. … In the first hour, it was over.”
The remarks came as the U.S. continued military operations aimed at preventing Iranian forces from disrupting global shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil transit route connecting the Persian Gulf to international markets.
Trump said U.S. forces had destroyed dozens of Iranian vessels, including ships used to deploy naval mines in the crucial waterway.
Earlier Wednesday, Trump said 28 Iranian mine-laying ships had been destroyed, but updated that number to 31 while speaking in Kentucky.
The president linked the military operation to broader efforts to keep global energy supplies flowing amid the conflict. He said the International Energy Agency had agreed to coordinate the release of emergency oil reserves.
“The International Energy Agency agreed to coordinate the release of a record 400 million barrels of oil from various national petroleum reserves around the world, which will substantially reduce the oil prices as we end this threat to America and this threat to the world,” Trump said.
Trump’s remarks come as three cargo ships were damaged by “projectiles” in the Strait of Hormuz, possibly jeopardizing the president’s goal of securing the water passage.
THREE CARGO SHIPS DAMAGED BY PROJECTILES IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ
The three ships were operating under Thai, Japanese, and Marshall-Islands flags. The Thai-flagged ship was the closest to Iran, and three of its crew members were reported missing.
A spokesman for Tehran’s Khatam al Anbiya military command headquarters warned that the attacks were only the introduction of its retaliation and that not “even a single litre of oil” would be allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
