Trump made the remarks on Sunday while speaking at Joint Base Andrews, where he had joined military personnel and senior officials in paying tribute to three American soldiers killed in Jordan and Iraq.
He described the fallen troops as heroes who sacrificed their lives to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons.
“We were deeply saddened by what happened. But those heroes, those patriots, were out there fighting to make sure Iran never gets a nuclear weapon,” Trump said.
He added:
“We struck them hard again tonight. And we did it in their honor.”
Trump’s comments came as the U.S. military announced on July 20, 2026, that it had carried out its ninth consecutive round of strikes against Iran.
According to the U.S. military, the attacks targeted Iranian military command facilities, air defense systems, naval installations, missile launch sites, drone infrastructure, and military communications networks.
The Pentagon said the objective of the operation was to reduce Iran’s ability to launch attacks against commercial vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
The latest strikes follow an escalation in tensions after two American soldiers were killed in Jordan on July 17, 2026, in an attack attributed to Iran, while another U.S. soldier was killed in Iraq on July 18, 2026.
