Achieving U.S. military objectives in Iran will take time and additional American casualties are expected, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday, as the U.S.-Israeli air campaign expanded.
“This is not a single overnight operation,” Gen. Dan Caine told reporters. “The military objectives that CENTCOM and the Joint Force have been tasked with will take some time to achieve, and in some cases will be difficult and gritty work.”
A fourth US service member died Monday of injuries sustained in the operation against Iran.
At the same press conference, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the campaign would not turn into an “endless war” and stressed that the goal is to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities, naval assets and other security infrastructure.
“This is not Iraq. This is not endless,” Hegseth said.