American Bombers Struck Close to 200 Targets Deep Inside Iran: CENTCOM

B-2 Spirit stealth bombers dropped dozens of 2,000-pound penetrator bombs that targeted deeply-buried Iranian ballistic missile launchers.

A plume of smoke rises following a reported explosion in Tehran on Feb. 28, 2026. Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images

The United States’ bomber force struck nearly 200 targets located deep within Iranian territory over the last 72 hours, including around Tehran, Navy Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), said during a Thursday press briefing, according to a March 5 statement from the Department of War.

Cooper added that, just about an hour prior to the briefing, America’s B-2 Spirit stealth bombers dropped dozens of 2,000-pound penetrator bombs, targeting ballistic missile launchers deeply buried inside Iran’s landscape. The launchers have remained one of the most potent offensive weapons on the Iranian side since the start of the conflict, with missiles launched against other Middle Eastern countries, besides the U.S. and Israeli forces.

“Notably, we have also struck Iran’s equivalent of [U.S.] Space Command, which degrades [Iran’s] ability to threaten Americans,” Cooper said.

The admiral assessed that U.S. combat power in the region was growing while Iran was facing a continuous decline in its combat capabilities.

Iran’s ballistic missile attacks have fallen by 90 percent since the first day of the war, with drone attacks declining by 83 percent in the same period, Cooper said. Iran’s air defenses have been “relentlessly destroyed” by U.S. and Israeli forces.

As for Iran’s sea assets, more than 30 of its naval ships have been sunk. A few hours prior to the briefing, the United States hit an Iranian drone carrier ship roughly the size of a World War II aircraft carrier, said the admiral.

CENTCOM forces are working to destroy Iran’s missile industrial base under orders from President Donald Trump.

“We’re not just hitting what they have, we’re destroying their ability to rebuild,” Cooper said. “And so, as we transition to the next phase of this operation, we will systemically dismantle Iran’s missile production capability for the future, and that’s absolutely in progress.”

In a March 6 post on X, CENTCOM gave an update on the first seven days of Operation Epic Fury.

Launched on Feb. 28, the military operation has struck more than 3,000 targets in Iran and damaged or destroyed 43 ships.

U.S. assets deployed in the conflict include B-1 bombers, B-2 stealth bombers, Patriot interceptor missile systems, F-22 fighter jets, F-35 stealth fighters, nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, and guided-missile destroyers.

The operation has targeted Iran’s command and control centers, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ joint headquarters, ballistic missile sites, integrated air defense systems, military communication capabilities, submarines, and anti-ship missile sites, according to the post.

Sustaining the Campaign

During the press briefing, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the Iranian regime is mistaken that the United States doesn’t have enough munitions to successfully see through the operation.

“Iran is hoping that we cannot sustain this, which is a really bad miscalculation for the [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] in Iran,” Hegseth said. “Our stockpiles of defensive and offensive weapons allow us to sustain this campaign as long as we need to. … Again, our munition status only increases as our advantage increases. [And] our capabilities? We have only just begun to fight and fight decisively.”

“The amount of combat power that’s still flowing—that’s still coming—that we’ll be able to project over Iran is in multiples of what it currently is right now, when you add up our capabilities and those of the Israeli defense forces.”

CENTCOM also dismissed several rumors regarding the supposed losses it has taken. In a March 6 post on X, CENTCOM shared pictures of the USS Abraham Lincoln after the Iranian regime claimed that it had sunk the ship.

In another post, CENTCOM said rumors of a U.S. fighter jet being shot down over Basra, Iraq, were “baseless and NOT TRUE.”

Meanwhile, Trump said on Truth Social that “there will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!”

After selecting “a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s), we, and many of our wonderful and very brave allies and partners, will work tirelessly to bring Iran back from the brink of destruction, making it economically bigger, better, and stronger than ever before. IRAN WILL HAVE A GREAT FUTURE.”

Almost 24,000 Americans have been repatriated from the Middle East since Feb. 28. The majority of these individuals were able to get back to the United States via commercial travel, the State Department said Friday. For those seeking assistance, the department arranged charter flights.