Hegseth: We Will Fight To the Finish – And Day 10 Will Blow You Away

“This is not 2003,” Pete Hegseth declared at a press conference this morning. The days of nebulous missions and nation-building are “dead,” the Secretary of War emphasized while promising to put all resources and efforts into winning the conflict with Iran rather than managing not to lose it. 

If anyone doubts that resolve, Hegseth challenged, wait to see what Day 10 of the war shows. He promised the most intense attacks on the Iranian regime yet, while noting the “bifurcation” of the regime’s responses:

Secretary Pete Hegseth said that U.S. strikes on Tehran would continue to amplify, meaning Tuesday’s aerial strikes would mark the “most intense” of the 10-day conflict.

Read more: https://t.co/ME24ztjMTZ pic.twitter.com/ZaCSXoZgle

— ABC News (@ABC) March 10, 2026

The Wall Street Journal noticed a message change from yesterday, perhaps prompted by the Iranians. Yesterday, Donald Trump suggested that he might be open to a negotiated end to the conflict, and those remarks prompted a market rebound. The WSJ had reported earlier on Monday that some Trump advisors had been suggesting that it might be time for an “off ramp,” with an eye on the economics of the war:

President Trump said he was eyeing a quick end to the war in Iran, as some of his advisers privately urged him to look for an exit plan amid spiking oil prices and concerns that a lengthy conflict could spark political backlash. 

Speaking to reporters in Florida on Monday, Trump characterized the military mission as mostly having achieved its goals. “We’re way ahead of schedule,” he said, adding he thought it would be over “very soon.”

He didn’t provide a clear timeline for ending the Iran operation. When asked about helping the Iranian people who have risen up against the regime, Trump sounded ready for a quick conclusion rather than to continue to push for leadership change.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi didn’t wait long to reject any talks with the US. Ali Larijani, the head of their national security council, threatened Trump with assassination:

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tuesday his country would keep fighting as long as necessary, casting doubt on US President Donald Trump’s insistence the previous day that the conflict would be over “soon.”

And the Islamic Republic’s security chief, Ali Larijani, dismissed Trump’s “empty” threats, insisting that the people of Iran did not fear them.

“Even those greater than you could not eliminate the Iranian nation,” Larijani warned on X. “Watch out for yourself — lest you be eliminated.”

The remarks from Araghchi, who also ruled out negotiations with Washington, came as Tehran launched a new wave of attacks on US-allied Gulf nations, hours after Trump’s assurances of a swift end to the rapidly widening conflict.

That may have prompted a different tone from Hegseth this morning, who pledged that the US would not stop until all of its clearly defined objectives. Today, Hegseth promised, would demonstrate the American commitment to the permanent end of the Iranian military and terror threat to the region:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed that Tuesday would be the “most intense day” of American strikes against Iran since the start of the war, after President Trump sent mixed signals about a possible end to the conflict.

“The most fighters, the most bombers, the most strikes,” Mr. Hegseth said at a news conference at the Pentagon alongside Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Mr. Hegseth’s comments were among several indicating that the main parties in the war were sticking to their positions, with no talk of diplomatic efforts to end a conflict that has killed over 1,000 people and that has seriously disrupted global energy markets.

In other words, no off-ramps are yet in sight, at least not in Iran on Day 10. In Lebanon, the official government desperately seeks an off-ramp from Hezbollah’s domination and destruction. Its president took the unusual step today of offering direct talks with Israel to stop the destruction of the Dahiya suburb of Beirut and to negotiate the long-demanded disarmament of Hezbollah:

Lebanon’s president has called for direct negotiations with Israel as part of a proposal to end the escalating conflict with Hezbollah, while sharply criticising the Iran-backed group for dragging the country into a wider regional war.

A spokesperson for President Joseph Aoun told the BBC that Lebanon was ready to negotiate, but not while the country remained under Israeli fire. …

Under the Lebanese president’s four-point plan, a “complete truce” would coincide with the disarmament of Hezbollah, and international assistance for the Lebanese Armed Forces to help them regain control of “areas of tension”.

“And simultaneously, Lebanon and Israel [to] begin direct negotiations under international sponsorship, in order to execute the aforementioned plan,” a statement said.

The BBC noted that the Israelis remain “skeptical” of this offer, not out of suspicion of its sincerity but out of habit. The Lebanese government has promised to disarm Hezbollah repeatedly over the last 25 years, and has done next to nothing to achieve it. Lebanon and Israel already have cease-fire agreements predicated on the disarmament of Hezbollah, including the agreement in November 2024 brokered by the US and France that ended the Hezbollah end of the October 7 war. Benjamin Netanyahu warned Aoun last week that Hezbollah’s disarmament was already his responsibility, and that it didn’t take more talks with Israel to meet his previous commitments. 

That has been the pattern for the last 40 years in Lebanon, and in the region. The US and Israel get hit and then are expected to demonstrate restraint while meaningless “agreements” are reached, only to be broken again by Iran and its proxies. Israel made clear in the aftermath of October 7 that those days and calculations have come to an end. The US plans to deliver the same message directly to Iran and make sure that the message is fully received this time. If the Lebanese government wants to end wars on its turf, then they had better live up to their side of the bargain this time. 

Editor’s Note: For decades, former presidents have been all talk and no action. Now, Donald Trump is eliminating the threat from Iran once and for all.

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