United States President Donald Trump has vowed to continue the “religious mission” against Iran until “all objectives are achieved,” with the possibility that more U.S. soldiers will die in the process.
Speaking in a video posted to his Truth social account on Sunday, Trump again framed war against Iran as a response to an existential threat to the US, saying “an Iranian regime armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons poses a dire threat to every American.”
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Trump and his top officials had repeatedly made similar statements in the run-up to Saturday’s attack that killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and several top members of the country’s leadership.
However, they have so far presented no evidence to support that Iran is developing a long-range missile capable of hitting the US or is anywhere close to developing a nuclear weapon.
Tehran has long denied seeking such a weapon, with experts estimating that if it did seek nuclear weapons, development would take several years. The US launched its attack alongside Israel amid ongoing US-Iran talks over its nuclear programme.
Trump cited three US military personnel killed on Sunday amid Iran’s regional retaliation.
“As a nation, we grieve for the true American patriots who made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation as we continue the righteous mission for which they gave their lives,” Trump said.
“And sadly, there will be more before it ends,” he said. “That’s what it is – more than likely, but we’ll do everything we can in case it doesn’t happen.”
He said: “But America will avenge his death and deal the most punishing blow to terrorists who have essentially waged war against civilisation”.
No hint of diplomacy
The speech was in stark contrast to several interviews Trump has given throughout the day, in which he appeared to float off diplomatic off-ramps.
“They want to talk and I’ve agreed to talk, so I’ll talk to them,” Trump told The Atlantic magazine, which the publication described as Iran’s “new leadership.”
“They should have offered something so practical and easy sooner. They waited too long,” he said.
A White House official confirmed to Al Jazeera that Trump is willing to engage with Iran’s new leader.
Earlier on Sunday, Iran announced a three-member interim leadership council to run the government in the wake of Khamenei’s assassination. It includes: President Masoud Pezheshkian; Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejei; and a member of the Guardian Council, Ayatollah Alireza Arafi.
Trump admitted that some of the negotiators involved in the talks with the US were killed.
Some analysts have argued that Iran’s new leadership is likely to engage with the Trump administration, given its track record. The US carried out the attacks alongside Israel during the US-Iran talks in June last year.
Some experts said the new leadership could continue a protracted conflict that could damage Trump politically.
“Most of them are gone,” Trump told The Atlantic. “Some of the people we were dealing with are gone, because it was so big — it was such a big hit.”
The attacks continue
In his speech on Sunday, Trump did not mention any diplomatic proposals, instead calling for regime change in Iran.
He again granted amnesty to members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the Iranian military and the police who “lay down” their weapons. If they don’t, they face “certain death,” he said.
He again called on “Iranian patriots yearning for freedom to seize this moment to be brave, courageous, heroic and reclaim your country.”
He cited his threats in January to attack Iran in response to the government’s crackdown on protesters.
“I made a promise to you and I kept that promise,” Trump said. “The rest is up to you. We’re here to help”.
Trump spoke as fighting continued across the region.
The US Middle East Command (CENTCOM) announced the killing of three members of the US military on Sunday, but did not provide further details. Five others were “seriously injured” in the operation, it said.
The American media reported that those who died in the Iranian attack were residing in Kuwait. Iran has also launched strikes against Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain and Oman.
Meanwhile, at least 201 people were killed and 747 injured in Iran, while at least nine people were killed and 121 injured in Israel.
At least one person has been killed in Kuwait, three in the UAE and two in Iraq since the outbreak began.
Iran’s IRGC said on Sunday it had targeted the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier with four ballistic missiles, but no damage was reported, a US official told Al Jazeera.
Speaking in a separate Fox News interview on Sunday, Trump said 48 “leaders” had been killed in Iran, although a full list of those killed was not released. In a post on TruthSocial, the US president said the US had “destroyed and sunk 9 Iranian naval vessels, some of which were relatively large and important”.
“In another attack, we mostly destroyed their naval headquarters,” he said.
In a post on X, CENTCOM said the IRGC “no longer has a headquarters.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Affairs Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran’s military command had been disrupted, with units operating in an “independent and somewhat isolated” manner. He said they were acting “on the basis of general instructions given in advance”.
Still, Araghi told ABC News, “We have no limits to protect our people, to protect our people.”
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