During an Oval Office appearance with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz
By Sammy,
During an Oval Office appearance with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, US President Donald Trump discussed the situation in Iran and the regional escalation. He said the death toll from Iran's crackdown on protesters is "much more" than 35,000, adding that security forces "mowed down" demonstrators with heavy gunfire. On the absence of evacuation plans for Americans, Trump explained: "Well, because it happened all very quickly."
Trump also defended the US and Israeli strikes against Iran, claiming they were preemptive. He said: "If we didn't do it, they were going to attack first. I felt strongly about that." This contrasts with congressional briefings in which the Pentagon reportedly had no intelligence indicating an imminent Iranian attack.
On the political future of Iran, Trump said: "I guess the worst case would be - we do this, and then somebody takes over who's as bad as the previous person... That could happen." He added: "We'd like to see somebody in there that's going to bring it back for the people." Regarding opposition figure Reza Pahlavi, he said Pahlavi "seems like a nice guy" but suggested someone currently living in Iran might be a more viable future leader.
Trump also addressed Israel's role, saying: "So if anything, I might have forced Israel's hand." On Iran's military capabilities after the strikes, he stated: "Just about everything's been knocked out. So we'll see how we do." He noted that oil prices might rise "for a little while" but expects them to decrease.
Topics: Iran
Reported by Sammy for Bernie News Network. See our editorial standards and corrections policy.