In a vehement response, President Donald Trump lambasted Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s assertion that Iran emerged victorious from its recent 12-day war with Israel.
Trump further emphasized that the United States is prepared to ‘absolutely’ bomb Iran again if it continues the pursuit of nuclear weapons.
On Friday, the US president flooded his Truth Social platform with harsh criticisms aimed at Iran’s supreme leader. Trump proclaimed that he had saved Khamenei from ‘A VERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATH’ and accused him of ‘blatantly and foolishly’ lying about the so-called ‘victory’ claimed during the war earlier in the week.
In his initial comments after the ceasefire concluded the Israel-Iran war, Khamenei also boasted that Iran had ‘slapped America in the face’ by launching missiles targeting a significant US base in Qatar. This offensive followed US attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities located in Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz.
In Friday’s post, Trump said he had demanded Israel pull back from “the final knockout”.
“His Country was decimated, his three evil Nuclear Sites were OBLITERATED, and I knew EXACTLY where he was sheltered, and would not let Israel, or the U.S. Armed Forces, by far the Greatest and Most Powerful in the World, terminate his life,” he said.
The question of whether US attacks destroyed Iran’s nuclear capabilities is moot – a leaked intelligence report contradicted Trump’s account of events, suggesting the military’s strikes had set the country back by mere months.
The US president said that Khamenei’s comments, which he described as “a statement of anger, hatred, and disgust”, had led him to drop work on “the possible removal of sanctions, and other things, which would have given a much better chance to Iran at a full, fast, and complete recovery”.