Iran's leaders are 'very violent, very evil people,' says President Trump, arguing that his intervention in the region likely saved Israel from nuclear annihilation. The post ‘If I wasn’t president, there’d be no Mideast and US would’ve been next’ – Trump appeared first on World Israel News .
Iran’s leaders are ”very violent, very evil people,” says President Trump, arguing that his intervention in the region likely saved Israel from nuclear annihilation.
By World Israel News Staff
President Donald Trump warned Sunday that Israel could have been destroyed and the wider Middle East devastated had Iran been allowed to obtain nuclear weapons, as he defended the ongoing US military and economic campaign against Tehran.
Speaking in an interview with* Fox News*, Trump said that preventing an Iranian nuclear weapon was the overriding justification for US actions against the Islamic Republic.
“If I weren’t president, Israel would be gone. There would be no Israel. And there would probably be no Middle East,” Trump said.
Trump argued that the consequences of a nuclear-armed Iran would extend well beyond Israel, potentially threatening the United States and Europe as well.
“They cannot have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
The president also touted the impact of the US naval blockade and Washington’s tightening economic pressure on Tehran.
“The blockade has been unbelievable. The financial hits that we’re giving them, we’re hitting them very hard,” Trump said.
He claimed Iran’s conventional military capabilities have been devastated during months of fighting, pointing to losses suffered by its air force, navy, air defenses and senior leadership.
Trump nevertheless described Iranians as “tough people” and “smart people,” while denouncing the country’s rulers and accusing them of mass killings during the unrest that preceded the war.
The president said Iran’s conduct since the outbreak of fighting showed why its nuclear program could not be tolerated.
“Iran is a number one leading state sponsor of terror, you’ve heard that many times, in the whole world. They cannot have a nuclear weapon,” he said.
“I have numerous people say, ‘Well, did you have to do it?’ And then I say, ‘Do you think it’s okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon?’ Nuclear weapon is massive destruction. You know, take what you see and multiply it times 100. And everybody says no.”
Trump denounced the regime as “very evil,” citing the violent crackdown against protesters in January.
“They killed 52,000 protesters as of three months ago. And sadly, they’ve added very substantially to that list.”
“Even people that aren’t protesting, they go into the houses and they take them and they shoot them.”
“These are very violent, evil people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, Israel would be gone. If I weren’t president, Israel would be gone. There would be no Israel and there would probably be no Middle East.”
He pointed in particular to Iranian attacks targeting Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait, arguing those strikes alienated governments that had previously maintained more neutral relations with Tehran.
Trump’s remarks came amid a renewed outbreak of direct US-Iran fighting after several weeks of reduced American military operations.
US forces on Sunday struck two Iranian missile launchers on Larak Island near the Strait of Hormuz. A US official said the launchers, operated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, were preparing to deploy mines into the strategic waterway.
The operation marked the first known US strike inside Iran since Trump paused a two-week American military campaign in late July.
Iran responded by launching ballistic missiles toward US forces in Jordan. Most were intercepted, according to reports, while the IRGC vowed further retaliation for the Larak attack.
The renewed exchange followed a warning from Trump last week that Washington would not tolerate another Iranian attempt to mine the Strait of Hormuz after US forces completed an operation to clear the international shipping lanes.
Trump announced that “all mines have been removed and/or detonated from within the International Waters of the Strait of Hormuz,” and warned that vessels attempting to deploy new mines would be destroyed.
Iran, however, has rejected US demands to fully reopen the strait. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Tehran continues to consider itself at war and has linked the reopening of the waterway to an end to fighting on multiple fronts and the lifting of the US blockade.
Alongside the military pressure, the Trump administration has opened a new phase of its economic campaign against Tehran.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last week announced “Operation Economic Outcast,” an effort aimed at foreign banks, shipping companies, oil traders and other entities that continue doing business with Iran.
“Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone,” Bessent said.
The Treasury Department has since begun targeting financial institutions accused of facilitating Iranian transactions and has threatened foreign companies and governments with secondary sanctions and exclusion from the US financial system.
Trump suggested Sunday that he is not necessarily seeking a negotiated document to formally conclude the confrontation, saying he would be satisfied with achieving US objectives without a signed agreement.
The post ‘If I wasn’t president, there’d be no Mideast and US would’ve been next’ – Trump appeared first on World Israel News.
Follow the story
