Overview
- At a March 13 Pentagon briefing on the Iran war, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed “no quarter, no mercy for our enemies.”
- The ICRC and the ICC Statute identify declaring “no quarter” as unlawful, and the Defense Department’s Law of War Manual states it is forbidden.
- Human Rights Watch and legal analysts cautioned that such rhetoric shapes a permissive command environment and could endanger civilians and U.S. personnel.
- Senator Jeff Merkley condemned Hegseth’s stance after high-casualty strikes reported in Iran, including a U.S. attack on a girls’ school said to have killed more than 170 people.
- Hegseth has promoted “maximum lethality” and looser rules of engagement during the campaign, with watchdogs reporting an exceptional strike tempo and no official move to retract his pledge.