The top U.S. commander in the Middle East said the U.S. has "severely degraded" Iran's air defenses, destroying hundreds of Iran's ballistic missiles, launchers and drones.
"In simple terms: We’re focused on shooting all the things that can shoot at us," Admiral Brad Cooper said in a video update on the operation released Tuesday.
Cooper said the U.S. has also destroyed 17 Iranian ships, including an Iranian submarine.
More than 50,000 troops are participating in the operation, which has so far struck nearly 2,000 targets in Iran, he said.
"Many of you may remember the Shock and Awe strikes of 2003. The first 24 hours of this operation were nearly doubled the scale," he said.
Cooper referenced the first U.S. use of one-way drones, saying, "I'd like to point out these drones were originally an Iranian design. We took them back to America, made them better and fired them right back at Iran."
Cooper said the U.S.' combat power is "building" while Iran's is "declining."
"My overall operational assessment is that we are ahead of our game plan," he said.
-ABC News' Steven Benyon