
US Senator Mark Kelly has formally demanded Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth retract and clarify his public pledge of 'no quarter, no mercy' against Iranian combatants, warning that the phrase carries an unambiguous legal meaning: kill prisoners rather than accept their surrender.
Kelly, a retired US Navy captain and Democrat representing Arizona, sent a formal letter to Hegseth on 16 March 2026, three days after the Defence Secretary made the statement during a Pentagon press briefing on Operation Epic Fury, the ongoing US and Israeli military campaign against Iran.