Pentagon Says Iran War Is ‘Not Iraq,’ but Won’t Rule Out Boots on the Ground |
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U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday gave a full-throated defense of the United States’ actions in the escalating war with Iran during the Defense Department’s first detailed briefing since the operation began on Saturday. Hegseth, who appeared alongside Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, pushed back on early critiques of the war, which was launched without congressional approval and amid ongoing diplomatic talks with Iran.
“We didn’t start this war, but under President [Donald] Trump, we’re finishing it,” Hegseth said, accusing Iran of waging a “savage, one-sided war against America” for 47 years.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday gave a full-throated defense of the United States’ actions in the escalating war with Iran during the Defense Department’s first detailed briefing since the operation began on Saturday. Hegseth, who appeared alongside Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, pushed back on early critiques of the war, which was launched without congressional approval and amid ongoing diplomatic talks with Iran.
“We didn’t start this war, but under President [Donald] Trump, we’re finishing it,” Hegseth said, accusing Iran of waging a “savage, one-sided war against America” for 47 years.
“They didn’t always declare it openly, except for their constant chants of ‘death to America.’ They did it through the blood of our people, car bombs in Beirut, rocket attacks on our ships, murders at our embassies, roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan, funded and armed by Iranian Quds Force and IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] killers,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth’s characterization of who started the war is false. While there is no doubt that there have been years of tensions between Washington and Tehran that have led to both direct and indirect hostilities—and hundreds of U.S. troops are estimated to have been killed by Iran-backed militias in Iraq—the first shots in the current conflict were fired by the United States and Israel.
The Pentagon chief also suggested that Iran was not serious about diplomacy with the United States over its nuclear program. “Tehran was not negotiating,” Hegseth said. “They were stalling, buying time to reload their missile stockpiles and restart their nuclear ambitions. Their goal: hold us hostage, threatening to strike our forces. President Trump doesn’t play those games.”
On that last point, Hegseth’s claim again appears to be false, as Trump administration officials reportedly told members of Congress that there was no intelligence suggesting that Iran planned to strike U.S. forces........