Foreign Affairs

‘Not Under Cover Of Darkness’: Bret Baier Opines About Implications Of Daylight Strike On Iran

(Screenshot/Rumble/Fox News)

Fox News anchor Bret Baier opined President Donald Trump’s Saturday strikes against Iran were especially meaningful because they were carried out while the sun was already up.

Baier, a former Pentagon correspondent, told “Fox and Friends Weekend” the Pentagon’s Operation Epic Fury against the Islamic theocracy was “not under the cover of darkness,” a decision he said evoked “confidence” in the U.S. military.

“It is overwhelming force. And one thing that really strikes you is that this happened in daylight,” the anchor told hosts Lawrence Jones, Ainsley Earhardt, and Brian Kilmeade. “This was not under the cover of darkness. This was not overnight at 3 a.m. their time. This was when the sun was up.”

“So, there is a confidence in this military that they have the ability to take targets out indiscriminately, even in sunlight,” Baier stressed.

WATCH:

In early January 2026, the Trump administration carried out “Operation Absolute Resolve,” which successfully resulted in the capture of socialist Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro. The Venezuela operation notably took place during the early morning hours local time, while the sun was still down.

The Fox News personality noted major questions “obviously” remain unanswered “as this [Iran] operation has taken off.”

“What comes next? What is [sic] the on-the-ground situation look like? How does this transition happen if it happens?” he asked.

Baier noted he was “really struck” by Trump’s eight-minute video posted to Truth Social at 2:30 a.m. EST announcing the strikes, which began after 9:00 a.m., local Iranian time.

“In the president’s eight minutes, he goes back years and years and years about what Iran has done to the U.S. directly. The Beirut bombing, to the terrorist actions to the proxies to the roadside bombs inside Iraq run essentially by General [Qasem] Soleimani,” the anchor elaborated. “The actions of the Iranian regime back decades was part of this preamble of where they are now.”

“He [Trump] said they [Iran] can’t get a nuclear weapon, their ballistic missiles are a threat to the region, and, at the end there, you heard him implore the citizens on the ground that, ‘This is your time. This is the time to rise up,'” Baier continued, noting several Iranians reported receiving text messages stating, “Help is here.”