Trump: U.S. Carried Out ‘Minor Strikes’ on Iran, Destroyed Anti-Aircraft System in ‘Minutes’

President Donald Trump said American forces carried out limited strikes against Iran, destroying an Iranian anti-aircraft installation within minutes. Iranian state media reported that two missiles struck Qeshm Island, with witnesses describing aircraft overhead before explosions near the city of Suza. The extent of the damage remained unclear. Asked about the reported strikes while speaking to reporters shortly after arriving in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday evening, Trump characterized the American military action as “minor,” describing the rapid destruction of an Iranian air-defense installation. “They built a little bit of an anti-aircraft device, and we knocked it out in about 15 minutes, maybe five,” Trump said. U.S. Central Command told Al Jazeera that the situation around the island was “relatively calm,” acknowledging the reports but declining to provide further details. In a separate development Saturday, Iranian military officials claimed their forces had shot down an American MQ-9 drone over Qeshm, although U.S. officials had not confirmed the assertion. The reported attack followed an American strike on the same island earlier in the week, when U.S. forces destroyed an Iranian surface-to-air missile launcher after it fired toward an American aircraft. Trump said Tuesday that American forces had monitored the construction of an anti-aircraft installation for approximately two months before destroying it shortly after completion. The strikes come as Iran attempts to rebuild its air defenses, much of which U.S. officials say were destroyed or severely degraded during Israeli strikes in June 2025 and the opening stages of the current conflict. Situated in the Strait of Hormuz, Qeshm Island houses Iranian military installations, including an underground missile facility and naval base, near shipping lanes where American forces have maintained a blockade of Iranian ports. The renewed military activity comes as Trump considers a broader campaign against Iran following the midterm elections, after previously indicating that he would delay any major escalation until the elections were over. During a White House meeting Thursday, senior national security officials presented Trump with options for the next phase of the confrontation, including expanded military operations, while other advisers advocated continued negotiations and economic pressure. Speaking to reporters at the White House following the briefing, Trump said he would decide “soon” whether further military action was necessary to prevent Tehran from rebuilding its nuclear capabilities. “I would rather not destroy the rest of the country if possible, but maybe I’ll have to,” Trump said. Trump nevertheless continued to signal Friday that a diplomatic agreement remained possible, saying Washington had made “a lot of progress” with Tehran and that Iranian leaders were seeking a deal. “We’re dealing with them now. They want to make a deal,” he said. Those efforts have involved intensive discussions between Vice President JD Vance and Qatari and Pakistani intermediaries, alongside diplomatic contacts involving Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. Trump spoke Friday with Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, as mediators worked to advance a possible agreement. Under a two-day proposal being discussed through Qatar, Washington would lift its naval blockade and release some frozen Iranian assets in exchange for Iran allowing International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors access to nuclear facilities damaged by American and Israeli strikes. Iran would then reopen the Strait of Hormuz under a temporary arrangement based on an understanding with Oman that Washington has not approved, clearing the way for broader negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear program, including its stockpile of highly enriched uranium. Tehran, however, has insisted that Washington first meet several conditions before substantive negotiations can proceed, including lifting sanctions and the naval blockade, releasing frozen assets, paying compensation for military damage, and ending hostilities across the region, including in Lebanon. Trump previously rejected those demands, while Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and a former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has maintained that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until Washington fulfills Tehran’s conditions. Despite the disagreement over terms, Qatar insisted Saturday that mediation efforts remained active, rejecting reports that negotiations had collapsed. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he had spoken with a dozen regional counterparts over the preceding two days as diplomatic contacts continued. The diplomatic activity came amid renewed threats from Tehran, with Iranian army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia warning Saturday that further American or Israeli attacks would draw an immediate response without geographical limits. Akraminia claimed Iran’s armed forces were on heightened alert and better prepared for confrontation following their previous engagements with American and Israeli forces. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared publicly since the opening strikes of the conflict, was also quoted by Iranian state media as warning that the confrontation would spread if Washington resumed military operations and dismissing expectations that the midterm elections would prompt a change in American policy. Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jklein@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.