US forces will be ‘hanging around’ Middle East after Iran ceasefire, Hegseth says

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday emphasized that American forces would be “hanging around” in the Middle East for the duration of the armistice between the United States, Israel and Iran — even as Washington edges toward an offramp from its 38-day campaign. The remarks came one day after President Donald Trump declared a two-week ceasefire with Iran, stepping back from earlier threats to level Iranian civilization. The president said he hopes the pause will pave the way for negotiations toward a longer-term agreement. Hegseth noted that the United States had carried out more than 800 strikes against targets in the hours leading up to the pause in hostilities. He added that if Tehran had refused to agree, attacks would have expanded to include “power plants, the bridges and oil and energy infrastructure.” The defense secretary went on to hail Operation Epic Fury as a “historic and overwhelming victory on the battlefield,” painting a picture of an Iranian military in ruins. “Central Command, using less than 10% of America’s total combat power, dismantled one of the world’s largest militaries, the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism,” Hegseth said during a news conference at the Pentagon. “Their mission program is functionally destroyed. Launchers, production facilities and existing stockpiles, depleted, and decimated.” Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, enumerated the claimed results of the U.S. offensive in Iran: 80% of Ira…