US War Secretary Misleading Trump About 'American Success' Against Iran: Report

Tuesday, 07 April 2026 10:45 PM

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (R) and President Donald Trump

A report shows Pete Hegseth’s public claims of "American success" during the ongoing American-Israeli aggression against Iran, might not fully reflect the reality on the ground, raising concerns about the accuracy of information being relayed by the secretary of war.

The Washington Post carried the report on Tuesday, citing an official as saying, "Pete is not speaking truth to the president. As a result, the president is out there repeating misleading information."

Air operations show limits

The Post cited a recent abortive operation, framed by Washington as a "rescue mission," as proof that the US did not have "complete control of Iranian skies," despite Hegseth’s self-described assurances last month.

The operation resulted in the US's and possibly the Zionist regime's losing a significant number of aircraft, including at least one A-10 Thunderbolt II and two Black Hawk helicopters during initial infiltration and reconnaissance missions.

Information obtained by Press TV regarding the operation has shown that the Americans miscalculated, believing that Iran's air defense would be unable to confront the aircraft involved, and, therefore, deploying numerous aircraft while the Iranian Armed Forces were on full alert and awaiting them. "In fact, American special forces fell directly into a trap set by Iranian forces," Press TV reported, citing its findings.

Trump, however, sufficed to call the successful Iranian countermeasures a "lucky hit."

Disputed statements on Iran's arsenal

Last month, Hegseth asserted that Iran’s missile and drone programs were "overwhelmingly destroyed."

The claim has been nullified by the dozens of waves of retaliatory strikes that the Islamic Republic has staged against sensitive and strategic American and Israeli targets across the region.

The reprisal recently witnessed its 99th wave, during which the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) even fired missiles from twin launch systems for the first time during the retaliation.

The Post, meanwhile, pointed out the cost that the United States had incurred by being forced to deploy expensive interceptors against swarms of relatively inexpensive, but highly effective Iranian attack drones.

Department of War spokesman Sean Parnell has, however, defended Hegseth, saying he has provided Trump with "decisive military options…," alleging, "The Washington Post is pushing a fake story of failure."

This is not the first time either the US president or his administration officials attack unfavorable accounts of Washington's performance.

White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly also insisted that Trump "always had the full picture of the conflict."