Israel says it will not join any US ground operation in Iran

Israeli forces will not take part in any US ground operation in Iran, according to Israeli media reports, as Washington weighs whether to widen its role in the war. Channel 12 said on Sunday that if the United States launches a ground assault, “Israeli soldiers will not be participating on the ground”, indicating that Israel would leave any such operation to US forces alone.

Channel 12 reports that if the US launches a ground operation in Iran, Israeli troops will not take part in the combat.

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— AF Post (@AFpost) March 29, 2026

The report came as US military planning for possible ground operations drew fresh scrutiny in Washington. The Pentagon is reportedly preparing options that could include limited raids, while the White House has not publicly confirmed that President Donald Trump has approved any such move.

Iran has responded with open threats against any US incursion. Iranian officials warned that American troops would face devastating retaliation if they entered the country, with one report citing Tehran’s vow to “set fire” to US forces if Washington put boots on the ground.

Military analysts have warned that a ground invasion would be a strategic blunder on the scale of the Vietnam war.

“Vietnam shows exactly when air wars become ground wars,” said Professor of Political Science, University of Chicago, Robert Pape who specialises in security affairs. He warned that the same signals are now emerging in the Iran war—and the next 10 days will determine what happens next.

Vietnam shows exactly when air wars become ground wars.
Not when troops deploy.
When the logistics system to sustain them appears.
In 1965, that shift took days.
The same signals are now emerging in the Iran war—and the next 10 days will determine what happens next.
My full…

— Robert A. Pape (@ProfessorPape) March 29, 2026

The Channel 12 report sparked backlash in the US, especially among America First and anti-war voices, who argued that Washington was being pushed towards a costly ground conflict while Israel refused to commit its own soldiers to fighting inside Iran. The criticism fed into a wider claim that American troops were being asked to shoulder the risks of a war Israel helped drive but would not itself fight on the ground.

“How about if we conduct a ground operation in Israel instead and take their fucking nukes away and go get our fucking money back???” said a prominent social media influencer angry over Israel’s refusal to take part in a ground offensive in a war widely thought to be waged on Israel’s behalf.

How about if we conduct a ground operation in Israel instead and take their fucking nukes away and go get our fucking money back???

How about that. https://t.co/Qa9mpn9Fuk

— Ian Carroll (@IanCarrollShow) March 29, 2026

If the war in Iran goes badly for Washington, there is growing concern that it could accelerate the decline of US power and expose the limits of American military dominance in the region. In that scenario, Israel risks being seen not as a strategic asset, but as the chief driver of a disastrous conflict that dragged the US into another costly and unwinnable war.  In that event, Israel could come to be seen as the state that helped drive an already weakening empire into a conflict that accelerates its decline.