U.S. military ground war quick victory plan exposed, aiming to replicate the "42-day destruction of Iraq" myth

Mars Finance reports that on March 29, news of the U.S. military preparing for ground operations in Iran sparked global attention. Unlike the full-scale invasion of Iraq in 2003, the Pentagon is employing a “surgical strike” tactic this time—without occupying territory or engaging in prolonged warfare, directly targeting Iran’s oil lifeline, Khark Island, attempting to replicate the swift victory of the 1991 Gulf War in “a matter of weeks.”

According to reports from foreign media, the Pentagon is preparing for a limited ground operation lasting several weeks, rather than a full-scale invasion. Thousands of Marines and paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division are currently stationed in the Middle East, with approximately 3,500 Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit aboard the USS Tripoli, heading straight to the core waters of the Persian Gulf.

On the 26th, the U.S. military stated it is considering deploying up to 10,000 ground combat troops, including infantry and armored forces, with a total troop size only one percent of that during the Iraq War, completely abandoning the strategy of massing a million troops at the border. The Pentagon’s strategic intention is very clear: to forgo the costly and uncontrollable risks of full occupation and instead focus on an “economic strangulation war.” Its core tactical objective directly targets Iran’s southwestern oil-producing regions and the strategic chokepoint of the Strait of Hormuz, further locking in on the key hub of Iranian crude oil exports—Khark Island, which handles over 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports and is considered the lifeblood of Iran’s economy.

According to PolyBeats monitoring, on the prediction market Polymarket, the probability of U.S. military entry into Iran before the end of this month is 5%, and the probability before the end of April is 64%.