US President Donald Trump has stated that he would “absolutely” contemplate bombing Iran again.
Responding to a question from the BBC’s Nomia Iqbal at a White House press conference, he said he would “without question” attack Iran if intelligence determined it could enrich uranium to dangerous levels.
Last weekend, the United States became directly involved in the confrontation between Israel and Iran, bombing major nuclear installations with “bunker buster” bombs before President Trump quickly called for a ceasefire.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated in a speech on Thursday that the strikes had achieved nothing substantial, while Trump maintained on Friday that the country’s nuclear sites had been “obliterated”.
Later on Friday, Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social claimed he knew “EXACTLY” where the ayatollah was hiding and that he had personally blocked Israeli and US armed forces from killing him.
It is believed that the Iranian leader was driven into hiding during his country’s two-week conflict with Israel.
All parties to the war had declared victory, with the ayatollah informing Iranians that Israel and Iran had failed to destroy the country’s nuclear program.
The country’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, eventually stated that the recent US and Israeli bombings had caused “excessive and serious” damage to the country’s nuclear plants.
In response to the ayatollah’s remarks, Trump reiterated his claim that Iran has been “decimated”.
“Why would the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ Ayatollah Ali Khamenei of the war-torn country of Iran say so blatantly and foolishly that he won the war with Israel when he knows his statement is a lie?” Trump added.
Trump claimed he had been “working on the possible removal of sanctions” on Iran but had chosen to “immediately” halt any sanction relief efforts when the ayatollah issued his message of “anger, hatred, and disgust”.
Iran has always asserted that its nuclear programme is purely for civilian purposes.
The most recent conflict between Israel and Iran began when Israel initiated attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities and military infrastructure, killing a number of nuclear experts and military commanders.
According to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “If not stopped, Iran could produce a nuclear weapon in a very short time.”
CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, said that the White House was contemplating a number of approaches to draw Iran back to the bargaining table, including allowing money for a civilian, non-enrichment nuclear programme.
However, Iran has disputed that nuclear discussions with the US will resume, following Trump’s announcement at a NATO conference in The Hague on Wednesday that negotiations will resume next week.
According to Iran’s health ministry, 610 people were killed during the 12-day airstrike, whereas Israeli authorities reported 28 deaths in Israel.
