This browser does not support the Video element.
The United States and Israel hit Iran's capital and other cities in multiple airstrikes on Wednesday, the fifth day of the war with Iran.
On Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that the United States is winning its war against Iran "decisively, devastatingly and without mercy," the Associated Press reported.
RELATED: Iran update: Pentagon identifies first US casualties
Speaking from the Pentagon’s briefing room, Hegseth said more forces, including jet fighters and bombers, will soon arrive in the region. He said that the U.S. "will take all the time we need to make sure that we succeed." He also said that a torpedo from a U.S. submarine sank an Iranian warship on Tuesday night, the first such attack on an enemy since World War II.
According to the AP, the war has killed over 1,000 people in Iran and dozens in Lebanon, while disrupting the supply of the world’s oil and gas, and stranding hundreds of thousands of travelers in the Middle East.
Here are the latest updates from Wednesday.
Iraq’s World Cup qualifying is impacted by Iran war
12:10 p.m. ET: The Associated Press reported that Iraq’s hopes of World Cup qualification are being impacted by the Iran war because embassy and airspace closures are preventing players from getting visas for the playoff tournament in Mexico.
According to the AP, the Iraqi soccer federation says it’s communicating with FIFA about its match against Bolivia or Suriname in Monterrey, Mexico, on March 31.
The federation wrote in a social media post that its coach, Graham Arnold, is unable to leave the United Arab Emirates, and several players and staff members are experiencing trouble obtaining visas.
Iraq and the UAE have been floated as potential replacements for Iran’s team — which has already qualified — should the Iranians not participate in the World Cup.
U.S. says Iran is firing fewer ballistic missiles and drones
10:50 a.m. ET: The Associated Press reported that Gen. Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the number of ballistic missiles fired by Iran is down by 86% from Saturday, with a 23% drop in missiles fired in the last 24 hours.
"And their one-way-attack drone shots are down 73% from the opening days," Caine said.
But some experts told the AP that Iran may be holding some weapons in reserve to prolong the conflict.
Sinking of Iranian warship was the first by a U.S. torpedo since World War II
10:35 a.m. ET: Gen. Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the U.S. Navy fast-attack submarine used "a single Mark 48 torpedo."
A U.S. official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed to the Associated Press that the Iranian ship was the Dena.
Speaking during a media briefing Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the Tuesday night strike on the warship is the first such attack on an enemy since World War II, the Associated Press reported.
"The Iranian navy rests at the bottom of the Persian Gulf," Hegseth said. According to the Associated Press, the Iranian warship sunk by a U.S. submarine was in the Indian Ocean. Hegseth called the strike the first such attack on an enemy since World War II.
Sri Lankan authorities said 32 people were rescued from the ship, which sank off their country’s coast. They said others died, without giving a number, the AP reported.
President Donald Trump said one of the U.S. military’s main objectives is to wipe out Iran’s navy.
U.S. military is helping Americans leave the Middle East
9:22 a.m. ET: Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told reporters Wednesday that "We’ve also opened up space available, seats, as C-17s and other airplanes come in to try to help folks get out," the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff says, referring to the large C-17 military transport planes.
The Associated Press reported that Caine offered no details how many Americans are being helped. The U.S. State Department has urged citizens to leave more than a dozen countries.
Hegseth says war with Iran could last 8 weeks
8:55 a.m. ET: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says the timeline could go further than previously speculated, the Associated Press reported Wednesday.
"You can say four weeks, but it could be six, it could be eight, it could be three," he says. "Ultimately, we set the pace and the tempo."
Hegseth acknowledges that the U.S. can’t fend off all Iranian drone attacks
8:50 a.m. ET: According to the Associated Press, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said, "We have pushed every counter-UAS system possible forward, sparing no expense or capability," Hegseth said referencing drones. "Like I said, this does not mean we stop everything."
On Sunday, six American soldiers were killed at an operations center targeted by an Iranian drone strike in the heart of a civilian port in Kuwait.
Hegseth and Caine say U.S. weapons stockpiles remain strong
8:45 a.m. ET: The Associated Press reported that top U.S. military officials say U.S. forces have adequate munitions for ongoing operations against Iran.
Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was speaking to reporters.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth added that the military used more advanced weapons at the start of the campaign but was switching to gravity bombs now that the U.S. has control of Iranian skies, and stockpiles of the advanced weapons remain "extremely strong."
U.S. says more forces are arriving in the Middle East
8:30 a.m. ET: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asserts that the U.S. is winning its military operation against Iran "decisively, devastatingly and without mercy."
He says more forces, including jet fighters and bombers will soon arrive in the region. He adds that the U.S. "will take all the time we need to make sure that we succeed."
Pentagon giving update on war
8 a.m. ET: The Pentagon is giving an update on Operation Fury on Wednesday.
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the Al Lailaki neighborhood in Beirut's southern suburbs, with the city's International Airport visible in the background, on March 4, 2026. (Photo by IBRAHIM AMRO / AFP via Getty Images …
A top cleric says Iran is ‘close’ to choosing its next supreme leader
7:45 a.m. ET: The Associated Press reported that Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami is a member of the Assembly of Experts, the body charged with picking a new leader. His comments were aired on state television. "The options have become clear," Khatami said. The AP noted that other top officials have indicated a decision may be close.
US State Department orders non-emergency staff and families in Pakistan’s Lahore and Karachi to leave
1:26 a.m. ET: According to the Associated Press, the U.S. State Department has ordered non-emergency staff and their families working in the consulates in Lahore and Karachi to leave the country due to safety concerns.
Staff at the embassy in the capital Islamabad were not affected by the order, the AP noted.
Pakistan shares a long western border with Iran and has a sizable Shiite Muslim minority. Roughly10 people were killed in Karachi on Sunday after protesters attempted to storm the consulate in the city, Pakistan’s largest.
4 of 6 soldiers killed identified
Dig deeper:
The Pentagon released the names of four of the six service members who were killed in the Iran war, saying they died in a drone strike in Kuwait.
All four Army Reserve soldiers were killed Sunday when a drone hit a command center in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait. All were assigned to the 103rd Sustainment Command in Des Moines, lowa.
The four soldiers included:
- Sgt. Declan Coady, 20, of Des Moines, Iowa. Coady was posthumously promoted from specialist.
- Sgt. 1st Class Nicole Amor, 39, of White Bear Lake, Minnesota.
- Sgt. 1st Class Noah Tietjens, 42, of Bellevue, Nebraska.
- Capt. Cody Khork, 35, of Winter Haven, Florida.
The remaining soldiers’ identities who were killed have not been released yet.
Hundreds have died in the US-Israeli strikes
The other side:
The Associated Press reported that the U.S.-Israeli strikes have killed at least 787 people in Iran, citing the Red Crescent Society. Eleven people in Israel have been killed since the conflict began.
Kuwait said Wednesday that an 11-year-old girl was killed by falling shrapnel as Kuwaiti forces were intercepting "hostile aerial targets." In addition, three people were killed in the United Arab Emirates and one in Bahrain, according to the AP.
US and Israel attack Iran
The backstory:
On Saturday, the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Tehran, and President Donald Trump said the U.S. was starting major combat operations against Iran.
The strikes killed the country’s leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several other high ranking officials, throwing its leadership into question and raising the risk of regional instability.
Big picture view:
Trump said there were four objectives for the operations:
- Destroy Iran’s missile capabilities
- Wipe out its naval capacity
- Stop the country from obtaining a nuclear weapon
- "Ensure that the Iranian regime cannot continue to arm, fund and direct terrorist armies outside of their borders."
This is the second time in eight months that the Trump administration has attacked the Islamic Republic during talks over its nuclear program.
The Source: Information for this story was taken from previous FOX Local reporting and the Associated Press. This story was reported from San Jose, California and Washington, D.C.