President Trump commemorated the 13 service members who died in the U.S.-Israel war against Iran in his Memorial Day speech.
Operation Epic Fury, the 68-day joint U.S. and Israeli military campaign against Iran that began Feb. 28, resulted in the death of 13 “wonderful souls, wonderful special people,” the president said.
“These incredible men and women gave their lives to ensure that the world’s No. 1 state sponsor of terror will never have a nuclear weapon,” Mr. Trump said at Arlington National Cemetery. “Oh, and they won’t, they will never have a nuclear weapon.”
He specifically thanked Air Force Maj. Ariana Savino, whose “selfless gift will not be in vain.” Savino died during an Epic Fury mission in Iraq.
“Our debt to you is everlasting, and it’s always going to end in victory,” the president said to her family in attendance at his Memorial Day address. “We’re having victories all over the place, more than we’ve had in many, many decades.”
The president’s remarks came amid negotiations to end the conflict.
He also cited the January raid that captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, dubbing it a “complete and total victory.”
“We’re working very closely with the Venezuela government right now,” the president said. “We took that over in one day, lost no one.”
He also noted America’s 250th anniversary year: “From 1776 to 2026, America has always stood as a great and moral cause.”
“Our warriors are no mere mercenaries. They are guardian angels who stride across the battlefields of history and stand watch over the highest and most beautiful planes the human spirit has ever seen, holding the line between liberty and tyranny, between civilization and barbarism, between good and evil,” Mr. Trump said.
“Wherever the American soldier walks, wherever he fights, wherever he fails and wherever he falls, he does it for the destiny of a nation like no other. There’s never been anybody like you. And for the fate of freedom on this earth, we salute you like nobody has ever been saluted before.”
