New Delhi: Operation Epic Fury started as a lightning strike but has now turned into a 22-day war of attrition. The United States and Israel launched a decisive onslaught that eliminated many members of Iran’s leadership, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Wave after wave of missiles destroyed important military bases, aiming for a quick “in and out” beheading.Yet Iran persisted. Its military command structure is solid, and its drones and missiles continue to pursue high-value U.S. and Israeli targets. The initial blitz caught Tehran off guard, but Iran’s resilience has alarmed the Trump administration. What was expected to be a rapid phase-out is now intensifying with no end in sight.
The escalation has swept across the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, threatening global energy bottlenecks. Anyway, President Donald Trump His White House team miscalculated Iran’s resistance—underestimating the depth of its resolve, redundant networks and retaliatory arsenal.Tehran fights on, turning American hubris into a protracted quagmire. As the blow intensifies, Washington scrambles for exits, exposing the dangers of underestimating a beleaguered adversary.1. The illusion of “quick attack” was shattered earlyThe operation was designed to carry out rapid decapitation attacks targeting Iran’s top leadership and military infrastructure. However, instead of collapsing, Iran absorbed удар and quickly reorganized, turning the conflict into a protracted war.2. Beheading leaders did not destroy IranThe killing of Ayatollah Khamenei and other senior leaders is expected to cause chaos within the Iranian system. Instead, succession was rapid, the chain of command remained intact, and military operations continued with minimal disruption.3. Iran’s retaliatory actions were broader and faster than expectedDaniel Benaim, a US expert on the Arabian Peninsula, told ANI that the US failed to anticipate how quickly Iran would expand the conflict into the region.“In fact, I think in some respects our diplomats were surprised by this surprise attack by Iran. And I think we were surprised by the fact that Iran acted in the first place to expand the conflict in all of these ways.” Missile strikes, drone strikes and regional escalation followed almost immediately.4. Lack of preparation exposes early gapsBenham said the government was not ready to act to deal with the consequences.“So, I think he did miscalculate because everyone knew it was a possibility, but they didn’t seem to be fully prepared. In terms of having assets nearby to reopen the channel … it took a few days.” Delays in securing waterways and evacuating citizens highlighted these gaps.5. The Strait of Hormuz has become a pressure point for IranTrump advisers initially downplayed risks to global oil supplies.Energy Secretary Chris Wright said: “Oil prices went up and then they went back down.” (New York Times)But Iran’s threats against tankers disrupted shipping, sent prices soaring and stoked global economic anxiety, exposing a serious miscalculation.6. No clear plan to secure global energy routesThis crisis exposed the shortcomings of emergency planning. Senator Christopher Murphy said after the briefing that the government had “no plan” for the Strait of Hormuz and “didn’t know how to reopen it safely”. This highlights the lack of a clear economic and military response strategy.7. Iran’s psychology is fundamentally misreadBenaim argued that Trump did not understand that Iran would not buckle under pressure.“I think his (Trump’s) instincts in this situation really prevent him from understanding the psychology of Iran and the fact that they’re not going to surrender when pushed to the wall.” (Arni)Rather than back down, Tehran viewed the attack as an existential threat and escalated it.8. Overconfidence within the governmentDespite the warnings, some officials believe Iran will respond in a limited way. Even the Pentagon later acknowledged the uncertainty.“I can’t say we necessarily expected that they would react like this, but we knew it was a possibility,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said. (The New York Times)This gap between expectations and reality has proven costly.9. Mixed information and unclear war goalsTrump has expressed confidence, at times calling the operation “very complete, almost” even as the conflict continues to expand. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, meanwhile, outlined narrower goals.“The objectives of this mission are clear,” Rubio said. “This is to destroy the regime’s ability to launch missiles … and destroy their navy.”This disagreement points to a lack of strategic clarity.10. From a decisive blow to a long-term quagmireWhat began as a high-profile, short-lived strike has turned into a protracted conflict with rising costs. Iran continues to target energy infrastructure and regional assets, while the United States faces rising economic and military pressure.Iranian official Ali Larijani emphasized Tehran’s position.“Either the Strait of Hormuz becomes a strait of peace and prosperity for all…or it becomes a strait of failure and suffering for the warmongers.” bottom lineThe conflict exposed how a series of strategic, psychological and economic miscalculations could turn a planned quick victory into an endless confrontation.With oil markets unstable, military costs rising and no clear end in sight, Washington now faces the consequences of a war it hoped to control but failed to fully foresee.
