Trump Admits Role in Aggression on Iran

By Staff, Agencies

United States President Donald Trump has claimed responsibility for “Israel’s” initial attack on Iran, contradicting previous US assertions that the “Israeli” entity acted unilaterally.

“’Israel’ attacked first. That attack was very, very powerful. I was very much in charge of that,” Trump told reporters on Thursday.

“When Israel attacked Iran first, that was a great day for “Israel” because that attack did more damage than the rest of them put together.”

His comments came as he called on Republicans to revoke the filibuster to pass laws in the Senate with a simple majority. He argued that his party should move on the Senate rule first in the same way that “Israel” launched the war against Iran.

On June 13, "Israel" launched a major, unprovoked assault on Iran, claiming several top generals, nuclear scientists, and many civilians. In retaliation, Iran fired hundreds of missiles at "Israel", prompting the US to join the conflict by bombing Iran’s three main nuclear facilities.

But in the early hours of the war, Washington stressed that "Israel" acted on its own and warned Tehran against retaliating against US troops and interests in the region.

“Tonight, 'Israel' took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran, and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at that time.

A ceasefire was reached after Iran launched a missile attack against a US air base in Qatar.

Since then, Trump has been increasingly taking credit for the outcome of the war, repeatedly claiming that the US “totally obliterated” the Iranian nuclear programme.

But on Thursday, the US president suggested he had initiated the war from the start.

For its part, Tehran has not provided a public assessment of the state of its nuclear sites, but Iranian officials have stressed that the country’s nuclear programme remains viable through the knowledge Iran has acquired over the years.

Trump, who campaigned as a “peace” candidate opposed to new wars, has faced pressure from his supporters to keep the US out of the conflict. Recently, he has reiterated his desire to strike a deal with Iran that would establish formal ties between Tehran and "Israel".

In the early months of his second presidency, Trump opened negotiations with Iran over its nuclear programme, and repeatedly stressed that he wants an agreement with Tehran.

But with the nuclear file apparently dormant, analysts say there is no sense of urgency in Washington to restart talks with Tehran.

The Iranians have also expressed skepticism about Washington’s diplomatic overtures. US and Iranian officials were set to meet for a round of talks in June, days before the "Israeli" jets struck Tehran.