Trump: I knew about Israel's plans all along
Donald Trump said he was kept informed of Israel's plans to strike Iran even as he publicly called for a new nuclear deal and warned against fresh military action.
The US president held phone calls with Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday and Thursday yet continued to say he hoped for a diplomatic solution that would prevent Iran obtaining nuclear weapons.
The result was a public smokescreen that allowed the US to get diplomats to safety and protect American interests, according to a string of sources familiar with the president's thinking.
One former senior administration official said Mr Trump was happy to play good cop, advocating for more talks, while Mr Netanyahu played bad cop.
'This was very much a case of, if Israel's going to do it and do the dirty work and do what we essentially want done, then he's happy with that,' he said.
Mr Trump spoke with Mr Netanyahu on Thursday, hours before the strikes began.
Asked what kind of heads-up he was given, Mr Trump told The Wall Street Journal on Friday morning: 'Heads-up? It wasn't a heads-up. It was, we know what's going on.'
Yet Mr Trump kept up a stream of public comments about the prospects for talks.
'We remain committed to a Diplomatic Resolution to the Iran Nuclear Issue,' he posted on his Truth Social site. 'My entire Administration has been directed to negotiate with Iran.'
His officials quietly briefed reporters that Steve Witkoff, his special envoy, was to travel to Oman for the sixth round of talks.
And he told journalists in the East Room of the Oval Office that strikes could derail delicately poised talks.
Israel and US coordinated closely
Yet at the same time, American diplomats were preparing for Iranian retaliation to strikes. Non-essential staff were ordered to leave the embassy in the Iraqi capital Baghdad, and families began flying home from other diplomatic posts in the region.
Simone Ledeen, former deputy assistant secretary of defence for the Middle East under Mr Trump, said the sequencing, posture changes and the president's own comments made it clear that the US and Israel had coordinated closely. The result was an operation to degrade Iranian capability while preserving American flexibility.
'Trump doesn't want war. He's made that clear,' she said. 'But that doesn't mean sitting on the sidelines.
'It means using all tools—intelligence, timing, messaging—to support an ally while protecting American interests.'
It also appeared that Israel was acting on a two-month deadline issued by Mr Trump in a letter sent to Tehran in March. The strikes were launched 60 days after talks with Iran began on April 12.
Mr Trump said on Friday: 'I told the other side, I said, you have 60 days to make the deal. On the 61st day, they attacked. Today is 61 actually, and it was a very successful attack.'
Just before heading into the White House Situation Room, he said it could even improve the chances of forcing Iran to end its nuclear ambitions.
When he was asked by Axios whether the attack had destroyed any chance of reaching a deal with Tehran, he said: 'I don't think so. Maybe the opposite. Maybe now they will negotiate seriously.'
The website also reported that Israeli officials had been spreading rumours that Mr Trump was quietly nodding through the plans, while maintaining a public veneer of opposition. The White House denies that this is the case.
The president has political concerns at home to balance too.
He was elected on an America First platform with promises to end US entanglements overseas.
Loyalists such as Marjorie Taylor Greene, the hardline congresswoman from Georgia, have warned that he is in danger of being suckered by the Washington establishment into giving up on that commitment.
On Thursday night, the result was reportedly a debate about how best to deliver a statement on the strikes amid tensions between Maga and Neocon parts of Trump world. In the end, it fell to Marco Rubio, Mr Trump's secretary of state and a hawkish voice on Iran.
'Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran,' he said. 'We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region.'
Mr Trump was mingling with guests at the congressional barbecue on the South Lawn of the White House when news of the strikes spread.
'I gave Iran chance after chance to make a deal. I told them, in the strongest of words, to 'just do it,' but no matter how hard they tried, no matter how close they got, they just couldn't get it done,' he posted on Truth Social at 5.56am.
But he already faces questions from supporters about where this leaves his campaign promises.
'How does the America First foreign policy doctrine and foreign policy agenda … stay consistent with this right now?' Charlie Kirk, a Maga influencer and ally of the president said.
Tucker Carlson, a long-time friend of Mr Trump wrote in his morning newsletter: 'Drop Israel. Let them fight their own wars ... It is not America's fight.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Rhyl Journal
25 minutes ago
- Rhyl Journal
Israel-Iran war stretches into a second week without diplomatic breakthrough
European ministers and Iran's top diplomat met for four hours on Friday in Geneva, as President Donald Trump continued to weigh US military involvement and worries rose over potential strikes on nuclear reactors. European officials expressed hope for future negotiations, and Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said he was open to further dialogue while emphasising that Tehran had no interest in negotiating with the US while Israel continued attacking. 'Iran is ready to consider diplomacy if aggression ceases and the aggressor is held accountable for its committed crimes,' he told reporters. No date was set for the next round of talks. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's military operation in Iran would continue 'for as long as it takes' to eliminate what he called the existential threat of Iran's nuclear programme and arsenal of ballistic missiles. Israel's top general echoed the warning, saying the Israeli military was ready 'for a prolonged campaign'. But Mr Netanyahu's goal could be out of reach without US help. Iran's underground Fordo uranium enrichment facility is considered to be out of reach to all but America's 'bunker-buster' bombs. Mr Trump said he would put off deciding whether to join Israel's air campaign against Iran for up to two weeks. The war between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13, with Israeli airstrikes targeting nuclear and military sites, top generals and nuclear scientists. At least 657 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 2,000 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights group. Iran has retaliated by firing 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, according to Israeli army estimates. Most have been shot down by Israel's multi-tiered air defences, but at least 24 people in Israel have been killed and hundreds wounded. Israel's defence minister said on Saturday it killed a commander in Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard who financed and armed Hamas in preparation for the October 7 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the 20-month long war in Gaza. Israel said Saeed Izadi was commander of the Palestine Corps for the Iranian Quds Force, an elite arm of the Guard that conducts military and intelligence operations outside Iran, and that he was killed in an apartment in the city of Qom.
The Independent
33 minutes ago
- The Independent
Americans are witnessing immigration arrests firsthand. Many say they can't just watch
Barefoot and armed with only his iPhone, poet and podcast producer Adam Greenfield raced out of his San Diego home after his girlfriend alerted him to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) vehicles pulling up in their neighbourhood. Nursing a cold, Mr Greenfield joined a handful of neighbours recording masked agents raiding a popular Italian restaurant nearby, as they collectively yelled at officers to leave. Within an hour, the impromptu gathering swelled to nearly 75 people, many positioning themselves in front of the agents' vehicles. "I couldn't stay silent," Mr Greenfield said. "It was literally outside of my front door." The incident reflects a growing trend across the United States, where more citizens are witnessing immigration arrests unfold in public spaces – from shops and gyms to restaurants – as President Donald Trump's administration aggressively works to increase such detentions. This heightened visibility is prompting many Americans, including those who rarely engage in civil disobedience, to spontaneously record events on their phones and launch protests in response. Greenfield said on the evening of the May 30 raid, the crowd included grandparents, retired military members, hippies, and restaurant patrons arriving for date night. Authorities threw flash bangs to force the crowd back and then drove off with four detained workers, he said. 'To do this, at 5 o'clock, right at the dinner rush, right on a busy intersection with multiple restaurants, they were trying to make a statement,' Greenfield said. "But I don't know if their intended point is getting across the way they want it to. I think it is sparking more backlash.' Previously many arrests happened late at night or in the pre-dawn hours by agents waiting outside people's homes as they left for work or outside their work sites when they finished their day. When ICE raided another popular restaurant in San Diego in 2008, agents did it in the early morning without incident. White House border czar Tom Homan has said agents are being forced to do more arrests in communities because of sanctuary policies that limit cooperation with ICE in certain cities and states. ICE enforces immigration laws nationwide but seeks state and local help in alerting federal authorities of immigrants wanted for deportation and holding that person until federal officers take custody. Vice President JD Vance during a visit to Los Angeles on Friday said those policies have given agents 'a bit of a morale problem because they've had the local government in this community tell them that they're not allowed to do their job." 'When that Border Patrol agent goes out to do their job, they said within 15 minutes they have protesters, sometimes violent protesters who are in their face obstructing them,' he said. Melyssa Rivas had just arrived at her office in the Los Angeles suburb of Downey, California one morning last week when she heard the frightened screams of young women. She went outside to find the women confronting nearly a dozen masked federal agents who had surrounded a man kneeling on the pavement. 'It was like a scene out of a movie,' Rivas said. 'They all had their faces covered and were standing over this man who was clearly traumatized. And there are these young girls screaming at the top of their lungs.' As Rivas began recording the interaction, a growing group of neighbors shouted at the agents to leave the man alone. They eventually drove off in vehicles, without detaining him, video shows. Rivas spoke to the man afterward, who told her the agents had arrived at the car wash where he worked that morning, then pursued him as he fled on his bicycle. It was one of several recent workplace raids in the majority-Latino city. The same day, federal agents were seen at a Home Depot, a construction site and an LA Fitness gym. It wasn't immediately clear how many people had been detained. 'Everyone is just rattled,' said Alex Frayde, an employee at LA Fitness who said he saw the agents outside the gym and stood at the entrance, ready to turn them away as another employee warned customers about the sighting. In the end, the agents never came in. Arrests at immigration courts and other ICE buildings have also prompted emotional scenes as masked agents have turned up to detain people going to routine appointments and hearings. In the city of Spokane in rural eastern Washington state, hundreds of people rushed to protest outside an ICE building June 11 after former city councilor Ben Stuckart posted on Facebook. Stuckart wrote that he was a legal guardian of a Venezuelan asylum seeker who who went to check in at the ICE building only to be detained. His Venezuelan roommate was also detained. Both men had permission to live and work in the U.S. temporarily under humanitarian parole, Stuckart told The Associated Press. 'I am going to sit in front of the bus,' Stuckart wrote, referring to the van that was set to transport the two men to an ICE detention center in Tacoma. 'The Latino community needs the rest of our community now. Not tonight, not Saturday but right now!!!!' The city of roughly 230,000 is the seat of Spokane County, where just over half of voters cast ballots for Trump in the 2024 presidential election. Stuckart was touched to see his mother's caregiver among the demonstrators. 'She was just like, 'I'm here because I love your mom, and I love you, and if you or your friends need help, then I want to help,'' he said through tears. By evening, the Spokane Police Department sent over 180 officers, with some using pepper balls, to disperse protesters. Over 30 people were arrested, including Stuckart who blocked the transport van with others. He was later released. Aysha Mercer, a stay-at-home mother of three, said she is 'not political in any way, shape or form." But many children in her Spokane neighborhood -- who play in her yard and jump on her trampoline -- come from immigrant families, and the thought of them being affected by deportations was 'unacceptable," she said. She said she wasn't able to go to Stuckart's protest. But she marched for the first time in her life on June 14, joining millions in 'No Kings' protests across the country. 'I don't think I've ever felt as strongly as I do right this here second,' she said.
Western Telegraph
34 minutes ago
- Western Telegraph
Israel-Iran war stretches into a second week without diplomatic breakthrough
European ministers and Iran's top diplomat met for four hours on Friday in Geneva, as President Donald Trump continued to weigh US military involvement and worries rose over potential strikes on nuclear reactors. European officials expressed hope for future negotiations, and Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said he was open to further dialogue while emphasising that Tehran had no interest in negotiating with the US while Israel continued attacking. 'Iran is ready to consider diplomacy if aggression ceases and the aggressor is held accountable for its committed crimes,' he told reporters. Benjamin Netanyahu visits the site of the Weizmann Institute of Science, which was hit by missiles fired from Iran (Jack Guez/Pool Photo via AP) No date was set for the next round of talks. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's military operation in Iran would continue 'for as long as it takes' to eliminate what he called the existential threat of Iran's nuclear programme and arsenal of ballistic missiles. Israel's top general echoed the warning, saying the Israeli military was ready 'for a prolonged campaign'. But Mr Netanyahu's goal could be out of reach without US help. Iran's underground Fordo uranium enrichment facility is considered to be out of reach to all but America's 'bunker-buster' bombs. Mr Trump said he would put off deciding whether to join Israel's air campaign against Iran for up to two weeks. The war between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13, with Israeli airstrikes targeting nuclear and military sites, top generals and nuclear scientists. At least 657 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 2,000 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights group. Iran has retaliated by firing 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, according to Israeli army estimates. Most have been shot down by Israel's multi-tiered air defences, but at least 24 people in Israel have been killed and hundreds wounded. Israel's defence minister said on Saturday it killed a commander in Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard who financed and armed Hamas in preparation for the October 7 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the 20-month long war in Gaza. Israel said Saeed Izadi was commander of the Palestine Corps for the Iranian Quds Force, an elite arm of the Guard that conducts military and intelligence operations outside Iran, and that he was killed in an apartment in the city of Qom.
