US troops brace for 'hit-and-run' guerilla attacks as 82nd Airborne deploys to Iran, military analyst warns

 Iran could significantly increase U.S. casualties if its elite military and proxy forces shift to guerrilla-style hit-and-run attacks in the region, a leading military analyst has warned.

Michael Eisenstadt of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy spoke as the Pentagon moved elements of the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division into the Middle East amid a new escalation in the conflict, according to reports.

"Iran has large infantry units in its military that are equivalent to the brigade combat team of the 82nd Airborne," Eisenstadt, a former U.S. Army Reserve officer, told Fox News Digital.

"The 82nd Force is too small to cause significant harm to Iran, but it is large enough to be vulnerable to Iranian strikes, and this would enable Iran to significantly increase U.S. casualties," he said.

Eisenstadt, who has worked as a U.S. government military analyst, claimed that, even if major conventional operations begin to wind down in the Middle East region, the danger may only evolve rather than disappear.

"We could see an end to major combat operations, with activity shifting to guerrilla-style hit-and-run attacks in the Gulf and other gray-zone activities by Iran," he said.

"Think of the aftermath of the 1991 Gulf War with Iraq, in which we had to contain the Iraqis for a decade after a very successful war."

Fox News chief national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin reported Wednesday that the U.S. has ordered the deployment of an additional 82nd Airborne forces to the region.

The contingent is expected to include Maj. Gen. Brandon R. Tegtmeier, the division commander, elements of his headquarters staff, and infantry battalions from the division’s Immediate Response Force. 

Officials also indicated that the total number of troops ultimately sent could still change.

Eisenstadt said this new deployment is intended to increase pressure on Tehran as the U.S. pushes for new ceasefire terms, set in place by President Donald Trump.