The US military operation against Iran will not turn into an “endless war” like the 2003 invasion of Iraq. This was announced in Washington on March 2, the third day of the operation, dubbed “Epic Fury,” by US Secretary of Defence (under an executive order from President Donald Trump, also called the War Department) Pete Hagseth.
Hagseth noted that the US is not planning a ground invasion of Iran and will not occupy the country in an attempt to build democratic institutions there, as it did in Iraq. At the same time, the minister declined to give a timeline for the end of the operation, saying President Trump would make the decision.
General Dan Kane, head of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the war “will not end overnight” and achieving the operation’s objectives will take some time. He confirmed that more US units were arriving in the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump has previously suggested that strikes on Iran could continue for four weeks.
Hagseth described the aim of the combat operations as the destruction of Iran’s military infrastructure, including its navy and missiles.
Hagseth also noted that combat operations of such a scale cannot do without casualties. On 2 March, the Central Command of the US Armed Forces confirmed the death of another US military officer as a result of Iranian strikes, bringing the total number of dead to four. The number of US military casualties rose to 18, CNN reported.
The joint operation between the United States and Israel had already killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and a significant number of other senior Iranian regime officials in the first wave of strikes on 28 February.
In response, Iran’s military has attacked not only Israel or US military installations in the region with missiles and drones, but also many of its regional neighbours, which Tehran considers allies of the United States. Not only military targets but also civilian targets such as apartment blocks, hotels or airports have been hit.