Yasin Gungor
02 March 2026•Update: 02 March 2026
ISTANBUL
US President Donald Trump renewed his call for Iranians to rise up while claiming that Iranian military commanders were surrendering en masse and seeking immunity.
"I call upon all Iranian patriots who yearn for freedom to seize this moment, be brave, be bold, be heroic and take back your country," Trump said Sunday in a video shared on his Truth Social platform.
"America is with you. I made a promise to you and I fulfilled that promise. The rest will be up to you," he added.
Trump claimed that Iran's entire military command structure had collapsed and that officials were "calling by the thousands" seeking immunity. He urged Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, military and police to lay down their arms and accept immunity "or face certain death."
He said combat operations "continue at this time in full force, and they will continue until all of our objectives are achieved," framing the campaign as "necessary" to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran from threatening the US. Tehran says it does not seek nuclear weapons.
Trump reiterated that an Iran armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would pose a "dire threat to every American," accusing Tehran of being the world's "number one state sponsor of terror."
"Operation Epic Fury," launched Saturday, has killed several senior Iranian officials, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Three US service members have been killed and five seriously wounded amid Tehran's retaliatory attacks.
