President Donald Trump broke his silence after Israel bombed Iran on Thursday night, talking to Fox News and then releasing several Truth Social statements.
Israeli forces launched major strikes against Iran on Thursday, targeting Iranian nuclear sites. Iranian state media confirmed that Israel killed the top Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commander in major airstrikes targeting Iran, Reuters reported. After the White House late Thursday night that Trump wouldn’t make a public appearance, the president first commented on the strikes, telling Fox News that they were aware of the strikes ahead of time but that the United States was not involved.
“Iran cannot have a nuclear bomb and we are hoping to get back to the negotiating table. We will see. There are several people in leadership that will not be coming back,” Trump told Fox News, adding that the United States would defend itself and Israel if Iran strikes back.
Trump added that the goal was still to get Iran back to the negotiating table.
Israeli officials are claiming that they had a “clear green light” from the United States to strike Iran, Axios reported, noting that American officials have not confirmed these details. Leading up to the attack, Trump was only “pretending” to be opposed to the strike, two Israeli officials claimed to Axios.
