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Jon Stewart slams Trump over Israel-Iran war: ‘What the f–k are we doing?'

Jon Stewart slams Trump over Israel-Iran war: ‘What the f–k are we doing?'

New York Post3 days ago

Jon Stewart blasted President Trump for his handling of the Israel-Iran war — telling his Comedy Central audience on Monday that the 'dealmaker-in-chief' was at fault for being on the verge of striking a deal with the Islamic Republic before things went 'bomby.'
'What the f–k are we doing?' Stewart, host of the network's 'Daily Show,' said during Monday night's monologue.
'What happened with Iran? Weren't we about to make a nuclear deal? Wasn't our dealmaker-in-chief making a deal to keep Iran from enriching uranium? Actually, didn't we have a deal before our dealmaker-in-chief so wisely pulled us from that deal? Why did this have to go bomby on Iran now?' Stewart said.
4 'Daily Show' host Jon Stewart criticized President Trump's handling of the Israel-Iran crisis.
The Daily Show / YouTube
4 'What the f–k are we doing?' Stewart, host of the network's 'Daily Show,' said during Monday night's monologue.
The Daily Show / YouTube
He followed up by showing a 2012 clip of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning that Iran was only months away from acquiring a nuclear weapon.
'Iran is months away from having a nuclear bomb, says Netanyahu… in 2012,' Stewart said, rolling his eyes.
'Netanyahu talks about Iran getting nukes the way I talk about the Knicks winning a title.'
As tensions flare between Tehran and Jerusalem, Stewart suggested that US involvement — whether direct or indirect — could have severe repercussions.
'Of course, a hot war between Israel and Iran could threaten the United States. It's best if we stay out of it,' he said, before airing a clip of Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisting that the US was 'not involved' in the bombing campaign.
'Phew. We're not involved. That's good,' Stewart deadpanned, before immediately cutting to a news report confirming that Trump had been 'informed beforehand' of the Israeli strikes.
'Good neighbor policy. I mean, we were informed, they let us know. Still not being involved, really,' he quipped, visibly irritated.
The segment escalated as Stewart played footage of Trump economic advisor Larry Kudlow claiming that the former president gave Israel a 'green light' to strike Iranian targets.
Stewart mocked the distinction: 'We were told, we approved, it's still Israel's game.'
But the moment that brought the room to stunned laughter came when Stewart played a final report revealing that Israel used American equipment in the opening stages of its assault on Iran.
4 Trump, speaking to the press after leaving the Group of Seven summit in Canada on Monday, signaled that Israel had no plans to scale back its military campaign.
REUTERS
'What the f–k are we doing?!' Stewart shouted.
Trump said Tuesday that he wants a 'real end' to the nuclear standoff with Iran and suggested he may dispatch high-ranking US officials to engage with the Islamic Republic, even as Israeli airstrikes on Iran entered their fifth consecutive day.
Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz invoked the fate of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, saying Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could meet a similar end.
'I warn the Iranian dictator against continuing to commit war crimes and fire missiles at Israeli citizens,' Katz told senior Israeli military commanders. Not long after his remarks, Iranian state media reported that an explosion had occurred in Tehran.
Trump, speaking to the press after leaving the Group of Seven summit in Canada on Monday, signaled that Israel had no plans to scale back its military campaign.
'You're going to find out over the next two days. You're going to find out. Nobody's slowed up so far,' he said.
As tensions escalated, Trump mentioned that US Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff or Vice President JD Vance could be sent to engage in talks with Iranian officials.
4 The Iran State Radio and Television building in Tehran on fire after an Israeli strike on Monday.
BERNO/SIPA/Shutterstock
Despite the growing military conflict, the White House has maintained that Trump is still pushing for a nuclear deal with Iran.
Trump left the G7 gathering earlier than planned, but insisted his early exit was unrelated to efforts toward brokering a deal between Iran and Israel, contrary to claims from French President Emmanuel Macron that the US had initiated a ceasefire proposal.
Trump posted on Truth Social late Monday, stating that something 'much bigger' was underway.
Inside Iran, the fallout from Israel's strikes appears to be reshaping Khamenei's power structure.
Several of his closest military and intelligence advisers have reportedly been killed, according to five individuals familiar with the matter.
One of those sources, who regularly participates in meetings with Khamenei, warned that the possibility of a strategic misstep is now 'extremely dangerous' for Iran's internal stability and defense posture.

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Israel presses ahead with strikes as Trump's 2-week deadline looms
Israel presses ahead with strikes as Trump's 2-week deadline looms

Politico

time38 minutes ago

  • Politico

Israel presses ahead with strikes as Trump's 2-week deadline looms

Israeli officials insisted Friday that they will keep up their bombing campaign against Iran, even as President Donald Trump has given Tehran a two-week deadline to come to some sort of diplomatic deal that reins in its nuclear program. Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, laid out his country's case at the U.N. Security Council, facing off Friday with Iranian representatives who urged the world to stop the Israeli strikes. 'Israel will not stop. Not until Iran's nuclear threat is dismantled, not until its war machine is disarmed, not until our people and yours are safe,' Danon declared. The Israeli assertions highlight how Trump's statement that he'll decide 'in the next two weeks' whether to strike Iranian nuclear sites provides an opportunity to Israel as much as it puts pressure on Iran. For Iran, it's two weeks to come to some sort of diplomatic deal with the U.S. that constrains its nuclear, and possibly other, programs. For Israel, it's a focused timeframe to do as much damage as it can to Iran's nuclear and broader military infrastructure before the U.S. may pressure it to accept a diplomatic solution. The more damage Israel does, the more it could weaken an enemy and improve the odds that Iran will capitulate to U.S. demands in the diplomatic process. The strikes themselves couldthreaten the survival of Iran's Islamist regime. Trump told reporters on Friday that he wasn't about to push Israel to halt its assault in Iran while he weighs what the U.S. should do. 'It's very hard to make that request right now,' Trump said. 'If somebody is winning, it's a little bit harder to do than if somebody is losing, but we're ready, willing and able, and we've been speaking to Iran, and we'll see what happens.' A senior administration official, granted anonymity to speak about the president's thinking, said 'everything is still on the table.' 'This is about giving this a little time and seeing if things look any different in a couple weeks,' the official said. Trump's 'two-week' window was delivered Thursday by press secretary Karoline Leavitt, who said, quoting Trump, that his delay in determining whether to join Israel's attack on Iran was 'based on the fact that there's a substantial chance of negotiations that may or may not take place with Iran in the near future.' Trump often says he'll make decisions in two weeks, only to extend his deadline again or never follow through. Still, Israel and Iran appear to believe the next two weeks will be a crucial phase. Iranian officials showed up for nuclear talks with European officials on Friday in Geneva; Israel pressed ahead with its bombing campaign against Iran, which is responding with missiles. Iranian officials met Friday with European envoys in Geneva in an attempt to revitalize the diplomatic process. The talks ended on an ambiguous note. Iranian officials have said their participation in future talks would hinge on Israel stopping its attacks. Some European representatives said talks should continue regardless, even as they urged both sides to avoid escalation. 'We invited the Iranian minister to consider negotiations with all sides, including the United States, without awaiting the cessation of strikes, which we also hope for,' French foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said. For Israel, the most critical, but perhaps toughest, official objective is eliminating Iran's nuclear facility at Fordo. That facility is buried deep underground, and Israel has been hoping Trump will enter the fight and use special, massive U.S. bombs to destroy it. There are concerns, however, including among Republicans, that Iran could retaliate against U.S. assets if America enters the conflict on any level, dragging America into another Middle Eastern war. Trump campaigned on avoiding such wars. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hinted that Israel has means to destroy Fordo on its own. It's not clear what those methods could involve, but Israel has significant intelligence operations inside Iran and it has often surprised even Washington with its capabilities. Either way, current and former Israeli officials said they saw no reason for Israel to back off its strikes now, despite calls for deescalation from some world capitals. The more Israel degrades Iran's capabilities, the less able Tehran will be to mount retaliatory attacks on Israel or the United States, should the latter choose to enter the war. From the beginning, 'the Israeli planning was based on the assumption that we have to do it alone,' said a former Israeli diplomat familiar with the situation. The person, like others, was granted anonymity to discuss highly sensitive issues. It's unclear whether there is any deal with Iran that Israel would deem strong enough. There is tremendous distrust of Iran's Islamist regime within Israel's security establishment, leading to a sense that Iran would cheat on any deal. Another unsettled question is whether a deal with Iran will cover only its nuclear program or also curb its ballistic missile initiative and support for proxy militias in the region. Some analysts have argued that Netanyahu decided to begin attacking Iran last week because he was worried earlier nuclear talks between Iran and the Trump administration would yield too weak a deal. If new efforts at diplomacy yield fruit, Trump could pressure Netanyahu to accept whatever deal emerges, potentially even by threatening to withhold weapons and other equipment Israel needs to defend itself against Iran. The war is costly for Israel, which has been fighting on multiple fronts — in particular against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip — since October 2023. As one Israeli official said, Iranian missile attacks feel like 'Russian roulette' to Israeli citizens.

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