What terms would we even demand, if Iran accepted unconditional surrender for some inexplicable reason? We have no clearly stated goals in their country.
Exactly.
And with whom could we entrust those demands if we had any? Every Iranian who gets into a position where he could, if he wished, order a ceasefire gets killed in short order.
At this point, it seems unlikely that the IRGC forces would stop firing drones even if ordered to do so by Tehran, because they would have no certainty that such orders come from a legitimate ruler or ruling body.
As the unit commanders are fundamentalists, chosen for their beligerence and commitment to the Islamic Revolution, they are likely to regard a ceasefire order as strong evidence that the order is not legitimate.
I don't think anyone can put the lid back on the box at this point, and I see no evidence that either Trump or Netanyahu are particularly concerned about trying.
This has all the makings of a very long war indeed, and one from which the US can withdraw only with serious loss of face, and from which the regional allies of the US (including Israel, but also the various arab nations) cannot withdraw at all.
Iran has form for simply never giving in. Back during the Iran/Iraq war, they were outgunned and outmatched in every way except sheer numbers by the Iraqis, but just refused to quit, even in the face of overwhelming firepower against which they were armed with two rifles for every three soldiers.
And Iranian geography is a defender's dream, and an invader's nightmare.
I took this photograph almost exactly a year ago; It is looking into Iran from above the Iraqi border. The whole damn country looks like this; One impenetrable mountain ridge after another, as far as the eye can see from 40,000 feet.
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