Strikes resume on Iran, U.S. military says Tehran's defenses 'severely degraded'

Strikes resume on Iran, U.S. military says Tehran's defenses 'severely degraded' March 4, 2026 6:02 AM ET By NPR Staff A person stands on the roof of a building looking at a plume of smoke rises after a strike on the Iranian capital Tehran, on March 3, 2026. Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images The war with Iran stretched into a fifth day Wednesday, with Israel launching a new wave of strikes in Tehran and Iranian authorities postponing public mourning rituals for the slain supreme leader. The Israeli military said Wednesday a "broad wave of strikes" targeted internal security command centers in Tehran, as well as missile launchers and other systems. The strikes came amid preparations in Iran for three days of funeral ceremonies for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which were set to begin on Wednesday evening, according to Iranian state media. According to Iran's state media, the ceremonies were postponed due to "overwhelming response." A new date has not been specified. Here are more of the key updates NPR is reporting on. U.S. Central Command says strikes "severely degraded" Iran's capabilities U.S. Central Command said late Tuesday that Iran's "air defenses and hundreds of ballistic missile launchers and drones" were "severely degraded" following U.S. and Israeli strikes on 2,000 targets. In a video posted on X, Adm. Brad Cooper, the commander of U.S. Central Command, described the U.S. operation as "ahead of our game plan." Cooper said the U.S. military destroyed 17 Iranian ships, including what he described as Iran's "most operational" submarine. Cooper said Iran has retaliated by launching more than 500 ballistic missiles and more than 2,000 drones. The scale of the campaign - the largest buildup of U.S. forces in the region since the war in Iraq in 2003 - has sharpened questions in Washington about how far it could expand. The U.S. has deployed 50,000 troops, 200 fighter jets and two aircraft carriers in the Mid...