Trump secretary accuses Iran of using civilian areas for attacks

“They fired the fewest missiles they’ve ever been able to fire,” he told reporters at the Pentagon.

According to the secretary of the American government, the United States will not give in to war until “the enemy is totally and decisively defeated.” The statements come a day after President Donald Trump made contradictory statements about his country’s timeline in the Middle East, while saying that the conflict could end “soon” as the US “has already won in many ways”, but “not enough”. Hegseth makes it clear that the final decision on ending the war will be up to Trump.

US accuses Iran of carrying out attacks from civilian areas

According to the US Secretary of Defense, the Iranian regime would be launching attacks against enemy forces from civilian areas, such as schools and hospitals.

“They deliberately fire missiles from schools and hospitals, targeting innocent people, because they know that their armed forces are being systematically weakened and annihilated,” he said at the press conference. To date, the military has not presented reports with evidence regarding these statements, despite the US Central Command pointing out the use of munitions from civilian areas in Iran.

Russia should not get involved in the conflict, says Trump secretary

Hegseth took advantage of the press conference to send a warning to Russia, which was identified as an active ally of the Iranian regime in the war.

He was asked by journalists about the call President Donald Trump had with dictator Vladimir Putin the day before. The Defense Secretary referred to the conversation as a “strong plea” to end the war in Ukraine, but warned that Moscow should not get involved in the current conflict in the Middle East.

On Monday, Putin expressed his support for the election of Mojtaba Khamenei as successor to his father, Ali Khamenei, in the religious and political leadership of the Persian nation. “Russia has been and will continue to be a reliable partner of the Islamic Republic. I wish it success in the difficult tasks it faces,” says the message released by the Kremlin.

Regarding the conversation with Trump, Kremlin international policy advisor Yuri Ushakov said that the Russian dictator presented several proposals for a quick political-diplomatic settlement of the Iranian conflict. According to the Russian diplomat, the conversation, the first between both leaders since December 2025, lasted about an hour and was “frank” and “constructive”.

Trump, in turn, argued that Putin can “collaborate” with the end of the conflict if he ends the invasion of Ukraine. “Obviously we talked about the Middle East. And he wants to help. I told him, ‘You could help more by ending the war between Ukraine and Russia’. That would help more. But we had a very good conversation, and he wants to be very constructive,” Trump declared at a press conference in Miami, after the contact.