Ex-Navy SEAL warns withdrawing from Iran now would hand 'victory' to regime

A former Navy SEAL warned Tuesday that halting U.S. action in Iran now would hand a victory to the regime, arguing Tehran would quickly reconstitute its offensive capabilities.

"You can't stop now. If we were to stop now, it's a victory for the regime. They would only be more empowered... They'd go back to building more missiles, get back on their nuclear program," retired Vice Admiral Robert Harward said on "The Faulkner Focus."

Harward's warning comes as oil prices surge and some congressional lawmakers call for an end to the war.  

"We need a government in Iran that will not pursue those offensive capabilities and be a threat to their partners and us in the region," he said. "And so we've got to stay in the fight 'til we accomplish that."

Harward, who was a member of George W. Bush's National Security Council and served in Iraq and Afghanistan, predicted the "short-term pain" of surging gas prices and that threats from Iran wouldn't last long.

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The next step, he said, is to focus on how Iran's new government will act after an "unprecedented destruction of military power" of both the regime and its proxies, like Hezbollah.

Harward expressed surprise at Lebanon's recent declaration that offensive operations conducted by Hezbollah are illegal, meaning Lebanon's government positioned itself against the Iranian regime.

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"They've turned on Hezbollah as well, which is a challenge in Beirut itself. So I think all fronts are coalescing in this fight against Iran and their surrogates," Harward said.

Hezbollah is an Iran-backed terrorist group that operates primarily out of Lebanon and has long been in conflict with the country's government.

Harward touted the progress made since Operation Epic Fury began and the scale of U.S. military might in the Middle East.

"[It] makes you very proud to be an American and proud of the investment in our armed forces and the people who serve. They're willing to put their lives at risk for long-term peace, security and stability. And that's the end objective here," he said.

Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28, 2026, as a military campaign led by the United States and Israel against the Iranian regime, aiming to systematically dismantle Iran's military infrastructure and prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons.