Retired U. S. Army Major General Randy Manner has raised concerns that a potential American ground operation on Iranian territory could end in disaster. Speaking on CNN, he questioned the viability of deploying limited forces into such an environment.

Manner argued that it would be a serious miscalculation to assume that a relatively small number of lightly equipped airborne troops or Marines could achieve meaningful results. In his assessment, any brigade inserted into an area with tens of thousands of armed personnel would be unlikely to survive.

Expanding on his point, the general pointed to a historical parallel from 1979, when Washington ultimately abandoned a similar mission due to fears of heavy losses and the possible destruction of deployed forces.

Earlier reports in the media indicated that the U. S. Department of Defense is considering a ground operation in Iran that could last several weeks. At the same time, officials are not discussing a full-scale invasion. Instead, the plan under consideration would reportedly focus on a series of targeted raids involving special forces, supported by regular infantry units.