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Retired US Army General David Petraeus said assassinating more of Iran’s leaders will not end current problems, while warning against a US ground operation to seize Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium.
“This would be a very, very difficult task, it would be extremely risky. And the casualties could potentially be quite substantial,” he said Monday on “Jesse Watters Primetime.”
“Assassinating a few more leaders will not put an end to this issue,” he added.
Petraeus’ comments come as the two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran expires on Wednesday, with President Donald Trump saying an extension is “very unlikely.”
US SEIZES IRANIAN SHIP AFTER OPENING FIRE; PAKISTAN SPEAKS IN DOUBT
When Secretary of War Pete Hegseth was asked this week whether U.S. forces would ever act to secure enriched uranium supposedly stored at Iran’s Isfahan nuclear complex, he declined to answer, citing operational security. (Guvendemir/Getty Images)
The former CENTCOM commander, who led troops into battle during the 2003 US invasion of Iraq, said deploying US ground troops to Iran would be very risky.
“We’re not really sure where these containers of these thousand kilos of 60 percent enriched uranium are,” he said. “They’re going to have to dig very, very substantially… That’s what makes the idea of a forced ground operation very, very challenging.”
Petraeus noted that while Iran has felt the hurt of the US military campaign, the regime is not lost.
“They’ve seen a lot of damage we can inflict,” he said.
IRAN REVERSES COURSE OF OPENING THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ AS THE HARDNESS TAKE THE FIRST SEAT IN TEHRAN
A split image shows the wreckage of what Iranian authorities say is a US military helicopter in Iran on April 5, 2026, and President Donald Trump speaking at a news conference in Washington, DC, on April 6, 2026. (Iran Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance/Chen Mengtong/Getty Images)
“They know what we can do… They are also trying to determine how much they can give on other issues that have traditionally been very, very difficult to negotiate.”
Trump said he will impose a US naval blockade on Iranian ports until a deal is reached. However, Petraeus said economic pressure has not completely desperate Iran.
“They are not on the verge of despair,” he argued.
The former CIA director argued that both the United States and Iran want the war to end, citing the economic challenges both nations have experienced amid the 52-day conflict.
“I don’t think either side really wants to go back to all-out combat,” Petraeus said. “There has been damage to infrastructure in the Gulf states. And we certainly don’t want to see more of that.”
Vice President JD Vance and senior White House officials will leave for Pakistan on Tuesday for a new round of peace talks, although recent reports in Iranian state media cast doubt on such meetings.
“I think both sides, frankly, really want a deal,” Petraeus said. “Obviously, there are challenges internally for us if this continues. Obviously, there are huge challenges for them.” [Iran] economically and financially if this continues.
Ships and oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Musandam, Oman, April 18, 2026. (Reuters)
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The former CENTCOM commander said the two main points of discussion in the talks will be Iran’s uranium enrichment and restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
“We’ll see if there’s room for trade,” he said.