Retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Blaine Holt told Newsmax on Saturday that the U.S. bombing campaign against Iran is dismantling the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and will press on until Tehran either negotiates or loses control, as President Donald Trump weighs further escalation after Iranian attacks killed U.S. troops in Jordan and Iraq.

Speaking on America Right Now, Holt said the operation has serviced more than 13,000 targets, a figure he attributed to the campaign that began in late February when U.S. and Israeli forces launched joint strikes under Operation Epic Fury. The strategic aim, he said, is to sever the IRGC's command and logistics, not to punish ordinary Iranians.

"We're not going after the Iranian people yearning to be free," Holt said. "We're examining the lines of communication that the IRGC needs to operate and we're denying it to them."

Bridges, power infrastructure and logistics nodes are all in play, he said, because each is "linked to military capability." He described the tempo as deliberate: strike, pause, assess. Commanders need to gauge not only bomb damage but "how did it change the complexion on the ground."

The campaign has intensified since Iranian ballistic missiles struck Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan on July 17, killing Pvt. Isabella Gonzales and 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, with Sgt. Angel Rampersad believed killed in the same attack.

A fourth soldier died the next day in Iraq during the controlled detonation of a downed Iranian drone. Trump told reporters Friday the U.S. is "locked and loaded" but has not decided on a broader escalation.

Holt cast the coming phase as a test of Iranian resolve.

"We are going to decrement the IRGC's logistics and their capability and their command and control until the Iranian people can make a decision about are they going to close the deal or are they not going to close the deal," he said. Whether Trump orders the next wave, he added, is "maybe, maybe not. We'll see."

On public communication, Holt acknowledged frustration.

NPR reported there has been no Pentagon briefing since May; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine last surfaced Tuesday at a Senate hearing where Hegseth pegged the war's cost at $37.5 billion.

"I would like to see a little bit more transparency. I think everybody would," Holt said. But daily briefings, he warned, can undercut troops in the field.

"It was very disheartening when we're in uniform going great, just stand up at the podium and tell them what else we're going to do today. I remember being in that situation. So there is a balance."

He said he supported the current posture. "I like that they're erring on the side of our forces."

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