Top military leaders reportedly warned Hegseth that the Iran operation is ‘too much for too long,’ but he extended forces anyway

People familiar with a classified Pentagon assessment have said that senior military leaders told Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth that keeping large-scale operations against Iran going is not sustainable. They said it also risks leaving the force less able to handle other threats, including those aimed at the U.S. homeland.

The same people said the heads of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, plus the four-star commanders for Europe, Asia, and Latin America, put those warnings in front of Hegseth. They said the material is in the Aug. 14 Secretary of Defense Orders Book.

They described the book to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity because it is classified. The document is normally issued twice a month and lists the status of U.S. ships, planes, troops, and weapons around the world.

Geographic commands and the Navy non-concurred with stays that run into 2027

President Donald Trump has pressed Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and accept several U.S. terms to end the stalled fighting. He has said every option remains available, including more strikes. Central Command has held more than 50,000 troops ready for months in case he orders another attack.

People familiar with the Aug. 14 book said it keeps some Middle East units in place through September and others into 2027. They said that the planned stretch led commanders to record their concerns. This pattern of Hegseth overriding commander objections has been reported elsewhere, such as when he reportedly polled top commanders on cutting a civilian protection program that all of them rejected. 

Leaders of European Command, Pacific Command, and Southern Command, along with the Navy’s top admiral, entered a “non-concur,” those people said. That means they disagree with the secretary’s order to extend the forces but will still carry it out.

Those commands have already sent ships, aircraft, and other gear to the Iran fight. The people familiar with the assessment said that the shift has cut into their missions and training, and that the Navy has been stretched the hardest.

Army and Air Force leaders agreed with Hegseth’s plan to keep their units deployed but stressed that the extra time would bring significant risk, the same people said. One person familiar with the book said leaders described the six-month-old campaign as “too much for too long.”

Hegseth spokesman Sean Parnell told The Post that force-duration decisions “are made based on the current threat assessment, strategic priorities established by the President, and the advice of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Combatant Commanders.” He said the Pentagon does not discuss the orders book or the concurrences, non-concurrences, and risk notes submitted during those reviews.

Gen. Dan Caine, the Joint Chiefs chairman, also reviews the book. His spokesman declined to comment and referred questions to Hegseth’s office. One person familiar with the assessment said the tone this time was “more dire,” and some officers were more direct than usual. 

European Command and Southern Command officials told Hegseth that sending ships and surveillance planes to Central Command has weakened homeland-defense work, the people said. Adm. Samuel Paparo of Pacific Command objected to the support he was ordered to keep providing, including a carrier strike group and destroyers.

Adm. Daryl Caudle, the chief of naval operations, gave the bleakest view, those people said. He told Hegseth the Navy cannot keep the current level of support because no end date is in sight, and that only about one-fourth of the destroyer fleet is ready to deploy.

Speaking in Norfolk, Caudle called the longer tours “very challenging for our sailors.” He said, “I typically am not a big fan of extensions, and I push back hard on that, but the enemy gets a vote,” according to a Navy transcript.

About 2,000 soldiers from the 82nd Airborne who mobilized in March will now stay a full year, Maj. Gen. Brandon R. Tegtmeier wrote in a Sunday letter reviewed by The Post. He told families that leaders “understand that a longer tour weighs heavily on every household, including our own.” Patriot battery tours are also expected to last longer, people familiar with the book said.

Another recent report indicates the U.S. has used virtually all of its long-range precision missiles during the Iran war. The fighting, plus earlier transfers to Ukraine, has drawn down Patriot and THAAD interceptors and Tomahawk missiles; about a quarter of the Reaper fleet has been lost, and regional bases have taken billions of dollars in damage. 

The administration has said shortage reports are inaccurate. Air Force units sent for bombing and other nonstop missions are also slated to remain into 2027, the people familiar with the book said.

The non-concurrences follow earlier warnings. Before the fighting began, Caine told the White House the United States lacked enough munitions and allied support for a long campaign. 

Gen. Alexus Grynkewich later warned he lacked enough Navy ships to shield Israel and the U.S. homeland from missiles. Pacific allies have said the drop in missiles and interceptors leaves them more exposed to China, and the Navy’s only dedicated Pacific carrier was sent to the Middle East to replace another ship that had been at sea for more than 300 days.