US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (local time) that “most of the people we have in mind are dead” when asked about potential future leaders in Iran after the killing of Tehran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during the first phase of Operation Epic Rage.Speaking during an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump also confirmed that the US had begun a “third wave” of military strikes against Iran, claiming that “everything has been destroyed” in the country.
Speaking about who could lead Iran next, Trump said: “Well, most of the people we were thinking about are dead… We had some from that group that died. Now we have another group.
They may also have died based on reports.”He added that many prominent figures were killed in the first strike.“And the leader of the group is gone. And as you know, 49 people were taken out in the first strike. And I think there was another strike today on the new leadership, and it seems that was pretty big as well.”Trump said the Iranian leadership had been “hit hard” and claimed that many within the regime were now looking for protection.
“A lot of people are filing a complaint. A lot of people who you wouldn’t suspect want to resign. They want immunity. They’re asking for immunity. And maybe at some point they’ll, you could say, fall down and lay down their arms.”
Trump and his team faced questions about the rationale behind the strikes, especially after a senior American diplomat indicated that Washington acted after learning of a possible imminent Israeli move.However, Trump insisted that the United States acted proactively. He added, “Based on the way the negotiations were going, I think they (Iran) would have attacked first. I did not want that to happen.”He went further, suggesting that he “may have forced Israel’s hand” because he believes Iran “would have attacked first” otherwise.Trump expanded, saying, “I don’t know. I may have forced them to do this. You see, we were negotiating with these crazy people, and my opinion was that they would attack first.”
They were going to attack. If we don’t, they will attack first. “I felt very strongly about that.”He added, “Israel was prepared and we were prepared. We had a very strong influence because almost everything they had has now been destroyed. The number of their missiles is decreasing significantly.”Trump claimed that Iran’s air defenses and detection systems had been dismantled, and also accused Iran of targeting civilian sites.He added: “They will hit people who were at least somewhat friendly and had no problem with it. They also only hit civilian places, hotels and residential buildings. We hit them where it is more convenient.”He added: “The original movie, Midnight Hammer, was big. Everything you see is big, but it’s not considered very big by some standards, by some of our standards. We have an army unlike any other army that has ever been built.”The president’s comments come amid criticism from opponents who say the administration pushed the country toward war without a clearly defined strategy, without informing Congress, and without explaining how the conflict could end.Critics also pointed to recent meetings between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, including their seventh meeting since Trump returned to office last year, where Netanyahu reportedly urged a tougher stance on Iran.However, some Republican allies rallied behind the president, saying: “No one is pushing or dragging Donald Trump anywhere.”