The US-Iran conflict, if not stopped, seems likely to become another Vietnam

Maj. Gen. Atanu Pattanaik (retd)

One of the most memorable and most poignant moment of my recent visit to Vietnam was the few hours I spent at The War Remnants Museum in Saigon, now renamed the Ho Chi Minh City after its legendary revolutionary leader who spearheaded the gruelling decades-long guerrilla war to force the Americans to humiliatingly withdraw. I also visited the intricate underground tunnels of Cu Chi which tested the American soldier to the core, vaporising their will to fight. To understand the US invasion of Vietnam, and contextualise its devastating impact on the country’s civilians, this remarkable and deeply moving museum is an essential visit. Many of the atrocities documented here are already well publicised.

Much of the disturbing photography of war atrocities come from US sources, including the images of the My Lai massacre of 16 March 1968 where more than 500 unarmed South Vietnamese civilians were brutally killed by the US soldiers. Some of the images on show are very upsetting, in particular photos of widespread destruction from US napalm bombs and the horrific toxic effects of Agent Orange on Vietnamese citizens. Over three million Vietnamese were killed and more maimed for life. The genetic disorder caused by these chemical agents continues to this day with horrific disfigurement of children born in the region. All because the American government feared that the success of Communist march into South Vietnam would have ‘Domino Effect’, spreading Communist ideology to the rest of the region and the wider world.

But why talk about Vietnam when the theatre of war today is West Asia? Well, one reason is that on 28 February 2026, during the opening hours of the assault on Iran, a missile struck a girls’ school located in the city of Minab, southern Iran, killing more than 150 schoolgirls amongst dozens of others, reminding the world of the horrors of My Lai. The indiscriminate bombing campaign by Israel and the US through stand-off munitions including bombs, missiles and rockets, reportedly using Artificial Inte