By Meghann Myers

 

WASHINGTON, 11 March. - (ANA) - Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has narrowed the U.S.’s objectives in Iran to three, scrapping President Donald Trump’s recent calls for “unconditional surrender” and a “great and acceptable leader” to replace the assassinated Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. 

 

The U.S. military is entering day 11 of its campaign to destroy Iranian missile capabilities, destroy the Iranian navy and “permanently deny Iran nuclear weapons forever,” Hegseth said at a Tuesday press briefing at the Pentagon. 

 

Asked about the White House’s quickly shifting timelines—Trump said on Monday that “the war is very complete”—his defense secretary hedged.

 

“So it’s not for me to posit whether it's the beginning, the middle, or the end,” Hegseth said. “That's his, and he'll continue to communicate that.”

 

The war isn’t “endless, not protracted, we’re not allowing mission creep,” he said, adding that Tuesday will be the “most intense” day of strikes inside Iran yet.

 

So far, the U.S. has hit more than 5,000 targets, including dozens of 2,000-pound bombs dropped on underground missile launchers, said Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

 

Iranian ballistic missile attacks are down 90 percent and drone attacks down 83 percent, Caine said, giving same figures as U.S. Central Command boss Adm. Brad Cooper gave at a press conference last Thursday.

 

Asked about Israel’s strikes on Iranian oil facilities, Hegseth said, “that wasn't our necessary objective,” but added that Israel is not leading the U.S. deeper into war.

 

Asked what the administration’s next steps will be after achieving its goals in Iran, Hegseth offered no specifics about Iran’s future leadership or any future deals that would control its ability to rebuild its conventional or nuclear weapons capabilities. - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/11 March 2026 - - -