U.S. President Donald Trump has said he would “absolutely” consider launching another military strike against Iran if intelligence indicated that the country was enriching uranium to dangerous levels.
Responding to a question from the BBC’s Nomia Iqbal during a White House press briefing, Trump stated he would act “without question” if Iran’s nuclear activity raised serious concerns.
The United States became directly involved in the recent Israel-Iran conflict last weekend, using bunker-buster bombs to strike Iranian nuclear facilities. Trump swiftly called for a ceasefire afterward.
On Thursday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei downplayed the impact of the strikes, claiming they had achieved little. But on Friday, Trump countered those claims, saying Iran’s nuclear sites were “obliterated.” In a post on Truth Social, his social media platform, Trump claimed he knew “EXACTLY” where the Ayatollah had been hiding and had personally halted U.S. and Israeli forces from targeting him.
Reports suggest the Iranian leader was forced into hiding during the two-week war with Israel.
Despite ongoing tensions, all sides have declared victory. Khamenei told Iranians that the conflict had not disrupted the country’s nuclear program. However, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi later acknowledged that the US and Israeli attacks caused “excessive and serious” damage to several nuclear sites.
Reacting to Khamenei’s remarks, Trump again insisted Iran had been “decimated.”
“Why would the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ of war-torn Iran claim victory over Israel when he knows it’s a lie?” Trump said.
Trump also revealed that he had been exploring the possibility of easing sanctions on Iran but halted those efforts after the Ayatollah’s public statements, which he described as filled with “anger, hatred, and disgust.”
Iran has long maintained that its nuclear ambitions are strictly for civilian use.
The latest flare-up in hostilities began when Israel launched attacks targeting Iran’s nuclear and military infrastructure, killing several nuclear scientists and military leaders. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu justified the strikes by warning that Iran was close to developing a nuclear weapon.
CBS News, in partnership with the BBC, reported that the White House had considered offering incentives to Iran — including support for a civilian nuclear program without uranium enrichment — as a way to resume negotiations. However, Iran denied any plans to return to the negotiating table after Trump said at a NATO summit in The Hague that talks were expected to resume next week.
According to Iran’s health ministry, 610 people were killed during 12 days of airstrikes. Israeli officials reported 28 fatalities on their side.
