Why Trump Is Striking Iran Now

WSJ What’s News

The Wall Street Journal

News, Daily News

4.1 • 4.2K Ratings

🗓️ 28 February 2026

⏱️ 18 minutes

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Summary

The launch of Operation Epic Fury against Iran by the U.S. and Israel marks the beginning of what President Trump hopes is the end of the regime in Tehran and its nuclear program. While Trump is calling on Iranians to take control of the government, Iran is hitting back with a barrage of missiles and drones targeted at Israel and U.S. bases across the Middle East. The strikes risk sparking a wider conflict in one of the world's most economically important regions. In this special episode of What's News Sunday, host Luke Vargas is joined by WSJ national-security reporter Alex Ward and WSJ Middle East correspondent Jared Malsin to discuss the strikes, Iran's response and the political debate taking shape in Washington. Follow the Journal's live coverage on wsj.com. Further Reading: Trump Rolls the Dice on Regime Change Who’s Who in the Iranian Regime Why Did U.S.-Iran Nuclear Talks Fail? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Boardrooms love buzzwords.
0:02.0	AI, climate, resilience.
0:03.8	But what do they actually mean for CFOs and execs trying to survive the next earnings call?
0:08.3	That's where the pre-read comes in.
0:09.9	Real experts and real talk.
0:11.7	Subscribe to the pre-read.
0:13.2	Presented by Workieva.
0:18.0	Hey, What's News listeners, it's Saturday, February 28th. I'm Luke Vargas for the Wall Street
0:22.9	Journal, and this is What's News Sunday, coming to you early this weekend to dig into the big
0:28.0	questions after the U.S. launched major combat operations against Iran earlier today. In coordination
0:34.7	with Israel, American strikes have targeted Iran's leadership and its military
0:39.5	assets, the prelude to what President Trump hopes is an end to the regime in Tehran. Unsurprisingly,
0:46.1	Iran is hitting back, firing missiles and drones at Israel and at U.S. bases across the Middle
0:51.7	East.
0:56.0	While it's still early hours,
0:57.9	the attacks that various factions in Washington and abroad
1:00.7	have either feared or longed to see for decades
1:04.3	are risking a wider conflict.
1:06.7	Today, we'll get the very latest on the U.S. attacks and Iran's response
1:10.0	and look at the likelihood
1:11.2	of just such an escalation. We've got a lot to cover, so let's get right to it.
1:18.2	For weeks now, we have been watching the accumulation of U.S. military assets in the Middle East,
	...

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