Netanyahu says Iran war goals more than halfway met

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the ongoing conflict with Iran has already achieved more than half of its intended goals, while declining to set a timeline for when the campaign might conclude.

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Speaking Monday in an interview with the US conservative broadcaster Newsmax, Netanyahu said the operation had moved “beyond the halfway point.” He stressed that the assessment referred to operational targets rather than the duration of the war.

War progress claim

“It’s definitely beyond the halfway point,” Netanyahu said, adding that the milestone referred to completed missions rather than elapsed time.

The war began on February 28 when Donald Trump and Netanyahu launched coordinated military action against Iran. At the outset of the conflict, Trump indicated the campaign might last between four and six weeks.

US officials signal weeks more fighting

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Monday that the conflict would continue for “weeks” rather than months. His comments came as opposition to the war grows among the American public.

The fighting has also pushed global oil prices sharply higher, raising economic concerns in the United States and other countries.

Despite the lack of a firm end date, Israeli leaders say key objectives are already being met.

Netanyahu said Israeli and US forces had killed “thousands” of members of the Iranian military’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

He also said the campaign was close to dismantling Iran’s weapons manufacturing infrastructure.

According to Netanyahu, the effort targets a wide network of facilities linked to weapons production as well as Iran’s nuclear program. He described the campaign as destroying entire plants and crippling the country’s broader industrial base connected to arms production.

Nuclear claims disputed

Netanyahu and Trump have repeatedly argued that Iran was approaching the capability to build a nuclear weapon.

However, that assessment has not been supported by the UN’s nuclear monitoring body, the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The claims also come despite Trump stating last year that US strikes had already destroyed major Iranian nuclear facilities.

Talk of regime pressure

Netanyahu said the campaign’s primary aim remains weakening Iran’s military capacity rather than forcing political change.

Still, he expressed confidence that the Islamic Republic could eventually collapse internally.

“I think this regime will collapse internally,” he said, adding that current operations focus on reducing Iran’s missile capabilities, military strength and nuclear potential while also applying internal pressure.

The conflict erupted shortly after Iranian authorities suppressed large-scale anti-government demonstrations.

Security forces killed thousands of people during the crackdown, according to reports cited during the conflict.

In recent remarks, Trump suggested the war may already be reshaping Iran’s leadership landscape. He said the conflict had effectively encouraged “regime change” by strengthening alternative figures within the cleric-led state who might take a more cooperative stance.

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Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 31 March 2026

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