In a statement that echoes a firm stance, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has declared that Iran will inevitably find itself with no option but to capitulate, as the collaborative military efforts of the United States and Israel in the region continue into their second week. This bold claim was made during a revealing interview with Major Garrett on the renowned program ’60 Minutes’ aired on Sunday night.

During the interview, Hegseth was asked to elaborate on President Donald Trump’s demand for Iran’s ‘unconditional surrender.’ His response was forthright, emphasizing the determination of the US to achieve victory. “It means we’re fighting to win. It means we set the terms,” Hegseth stated. “There will come a time when Iran will be incapable of further resistance—they will have no choice but to surrender, whether they realize it now or not.”

Hegseth further explained that the terms of Iran’s defeat would ultimately be dictated by President Trump. “Whether they want to admit it or not, whether their pride allows them to say it out loud or not—it’s President Trump who will set the conditions for that,” he noted, underscoring the administration’s unwavering position.

Adding another layer to the unfolding events, President Trump told the Times of Israel on the same day that the decision to conclude the military engagement with Iran would be a ‘mutual’ decision between himself and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This statement highlights the close cooperation and strategic alliance between the two nations as they navigate the complexities of the current conflict.

‘Whether they want to admit it or not, whether their pride lets them say it out loud or not — it’s President Trump who will set the terms of that,’ Hegseth said. 

Trump told the Times of Israel on Sunday that the decision to ultimately end the war will be made ‘mutually’ between him and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

‘I think it’s mutual… a little bit. We’ve been talking,’ the president said. ‘I’ll make a decision at the right time, but everything’s going to be taken into account.’

Still, Hegseth vowed in the ’60 Minutes’ interview that the US military is ‘willing to go as far as we need to to be successful’ in the operation to eliminate Iran’s nuclear capabilities.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth assured the American public on Sunday that Iran will surrender as the war stretched into a second week

Hegseth said President Donald Trump will ultimately set the terms of Iran’s defeat

When he was then asked about the option of sending boots on the ground, Hegseth said: ‘We reserve the right – we would be completely unwise if we did not reserve the right to take any particular option, whether it included boots on the ground or no boots on the ground.’ 

Either way, Hegseth said: ‘The president’s been right to say there will be casualties.’ 

‘Things like this don’t happen without casualties,’ he asserted. ‘There will be more casualties… especially our generation knows what it’s like to see Americans come home in caskets.

‘But that doesn’t weaken us one bit. It stiffens our spine and our resolve to say this is a fight we will finish.’

Hegseth gave the interview on Friday, just one day before he and Trump  attended the first dignified transfer ceremony for those killed in the Iran war.

They traveled to Dover Air Force Base, where the remains of six US service members who died in Kuwait were returned to their families.

The deceased include  Nicole Amor, 39, Cody Khork, 35, Declan Coady, 20, Robert Marzan, 54, Jeffrey O’Brien, 45 and Noah Tietjens, 42, died in the conflict. 

An unidentified seventh US service member also died after being ‘seriously wounded’ during an Iranian attack on US troops in Saudi Arabia on March 1, the US Central Command said on Sunday afternoon. 

Iran’s capital, Tehran, erupted into flames on Sunday as Israel and the US launched a fresh wave of devastating strikes

Huge fireballs could be seen erupting across the city’s skyline, while residents complained of a lingering burning smell in the air

Iran has been pounding the Gulf states ever since the US-Israeli operation began last week, with sirens sounding across Israel overnight and the United Arab Emirates saying it shot down Iranian drones.

In Iraq, air defenses shot down a drone early Monday as it approached a US-operated military compound inside Baghdad International Airport.

And in Saudi Arabia, US officials and their family members were urged to leave the country ‘due to safety risks.’ 

But Iran has not avoided damage itself, as its capital, Tehran, erupted into flames on Sunday. 

The skies over the city turned a disquieting red and filled with acrid smoke after several oil and fuel depots were blown up across the Iranian capital.

Huge fireballs could also be seen erupting across the city’s skyline, while residents complained of a lingering burning smell in the air, as both the US and Israel doubled down on their pledge to fight until the ‘eradication’ of the Iranian regime.

The head of Iran’s Military Office Abu al-Qassem Baba’iyan was killed in the latest wave of attacks, the IDF claimed on X.

The military official was also the Chief of Staff of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters. He is the latest major figure in the regime to be killed in Israeli strikes.

Hegseth said in the interview that more US casualties can be expected in the war

Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and Vice President JD Vance are seen at the dignified transfer ceremony of six US servicemembers on Saturday

Yet officials in the country remained defiant, as they appointed a new Supreme Leader on Sunday – Mojtaba Khamenei, the second eldest son of the former Supreme Leader.

Mojtaba, 56,  has strong links to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and was chosen by Iran’s Assembly of Experts ‘under pressure from the Revolutionary Guards’, according to Iranian media. 

US diplomatic cables have previously described him as ‘the power behind the robes’ and one of the key players within the regime, according to the Associated Press.

While Khamenei  has not held senior political roles, he studied under religious conservatives in Islamic seminaries in the Shiite holy city Qom.

Mojtaba Khamenei, pictured in 2019, was excluded from a list of three senior clerics his father reportedly identified last year but on Sunday was announced as the Ayatollah’s successor

Defiant Iran hardliners rejoice this morning after Ali Khamenei’s son was named the new Supreme Leader

Trump has previously said he would personally select a new leader and called Khamenei’s son ‘unacceptable,’ as Israeli officials said they would eliminate whoever was to take charge of the country next.

But in Iran, videos showed regime supporters chanting Mojtaba’s name and urging even more strikes across the Middle East moments after his appointment was announced.

Large crowds in Tehran waved Iranian flags and shouted, ‘Allahu Akbar, Khamenei Rahbar’, meaning: ‘God is great, Khamenei is the leader.’

More ominous still, the Iranian military vowed to respond to any Israeli attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure by striking oil sites across the region – after Israel targeted reserves the night before.

‘The governments of Islamic countries are expected to warn the criminal America and the savage Zionist regime of such cowardly, inhumane actions as soon as possible,’ Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesman for Iran’s central military command told state TV.

‘Otherwise, similar measures will be taken in the region, and if you can tolerate oil at more than $200 per barrel, continue this game.’