Report: US Preparing Major Escalation Against Iran That Could Include Ground Troops and Intensified Bombing

by Dave DeCamp | March 26, 2026

https://news.antiwar.com/2026/03/26/report-us-preparing-major-escalation-against-iran-that-could-include-ground-troops-and-intensified-bombing/

The Pentagon is developing options for a potential major escalation against Iran that could involve ground troops and an intensified bombing campaign, Axios reported on Thursday.

US officials and other sources speaking to Axios reporter Barak Ravid, a former IDF intelligence officer, described the potential escalation as a “final blow” that would give Trump more leverage and room to “declare victory,” though all indications are that Iran is ready to face ground forces and that any such operation would prolong the war.

Ravid’s sources said the potential options for a “final blow” include:

1.   Invading or blockading Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export hub.

2.   Invading Larak, an island that helps Iran solidify its control of the Strait of Hormuz. The strategic outpost hosts Iranian bunkers, attack craft that can blow up cargo ships, and radars that monitor movements in the strait.

3.   Seizing the strategic island of Abu Musa and two smaller islands, which lie near the western entrance to the strait and are controlled by Iran but also claimed by the UAE.

4.   Blocking or seizing ships that are exporting Iranian oil on the eastern side of the Hormuz Strait.

Another operation being considered is sending troops deep inside Iran to secure Tehran’s stockpile of uranium enriched at 60%, though it’s believed to be buried under the rubble following the June 2025 airstrikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities, so it’s unclear if a team of US special operators would be able to access the material.

The report said that President Trump hasn’t made a decision, but that a major escalation was likely if negotiations made no progress, and there’s no sign that real diplomacy is underway despite Trump’s claims. Iranian officials have rejected a 15-point proposal that the US passed through mediators and have set their own conditions to end the war.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt threatened on Wednesday that President Trump was ready to “unleash hell” on Iran.

Thousands of US Marines and US Army Airborne appear to be on their way to the Middle East as the Pentagon prepares for ground attacks, operations that are fraught with risk and will likely result in major US casualties since any ground force would face significant and sustained Iranian missile and drone attacks.

In the meantime, US-Israeli strikes continue to pound Iran, and the Iranian military continues to launch successful attacks on Israel and US bases across the region. According to a report from The New York Times, the majority of US bases in the Middle East are now basically uninhabitable due to the Iranian strikes.