Post-9/11 veterans say renewed military escalation with Iran echoes the early days of America’s longest wars, raising concerns about strategy, sacrifice, and lessons learned.
WASHINGTON | As U.S. military strikes against Iranian targets intensify, many veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan say the unfolding conflict feels hauntingly familiar — a potential repeat of the prolonged campaigns that defined America’s post-9/11 military era.
The renewed hostilities, tied to the ongoing U.S. campaign known as Operation Epic Fury, have triggered deep reflection within the veteran community about the strategic direction of American military policy in the Middle East.
For many veterans, the concern is not simply about the current air campaign but about whether the United States is again entering a conflict without a clearly defined end state.
Veterans Recall the Long Shadow of Iraq and Afghanistan
Following the attacks of 2001, the United States launched major military operations in Afghanistan and later Iraq to dismantle terrorist networks and stabilize the region.
Those campaigns became America’s longest wars, with more than 7,000 U.S. service members killed and tens of thousands wounded before U.S. combat operations ended and troops withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021.
