According to The Washington Post, the Pentagon is preparing for a ground operation on Iranian territory that could last for several months.

Citing a US official, the newspaper reported that the scenario under discussion is not a full-scale invasion. Instead, it could involve raids by special operations forces and infantry units. At the same time, the report noted that such an operation would expose American troops to major risks, including attacks from Iranian drones and other threats on the ground.

The source said the Trump administration had spent the past month weighing possible scenarios that included seizing Iran’s Khark Island and carrying out raids in other coastal areas near the Strait of Hormuz. The stated objective would be to locate and destroy weapons capable of threatening shipping.

The official also said that taking control of territory could damage the reputation of the Iranian authorities and give Washington added leverage in negotiations. At the same time, he argued that the main challenge for the United States would not be capturing territory, but holding it and protecting the troops deployed there. In that context, he said securing cover for personnel on Khark Island would be especially difficult: taking the island would not be the hardest part, while keeping forces safe after that would pose the real problem.

Earlier, US Central Command reported that about 3,500 Marines and sailors had arrived in the Middle East aboard the amphibious assault ship Tripoli. The Wall Street Journal also reported that a US ground operation in Iran could begin in the near term.