Trump names final deadline before launching attack on Iran but Israel says it ‘won't wait' for US to hit nuclear plant
DONALD Trump has given Ayatollah Ali Khamenei a final two-week deadline to strike a nuclear deal or face 'grave consequences' from US strikes.
The president is said to have privately approved plans for bombing Iran's key nuclear site, but was waiting for Tehran to come back to the negotiating table.
yesterday. Trump said he "may" join Israeli strikes against Iran and its nuclear programme, but added: "I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I'm going to do."
But the White House said today that the president will decide on whether the US will get involved in the Israel-Iran conflict in the "next two weeks".
Citing a message from Trump, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said: '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, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks.'
She reiterated claims that Iran is just "weeks away" from producing a nuclear weapon.
She added: "Iran has all that it needs to achieve a nuclear weapon.
"All they need is a decision from the supreme leader to do that, and it would take a couple of weeks to complete the production of that weapon."
Ms Leavitt said Trump wants to deal with things through diplomacy, but is 'unafraid' to take military action if necessary.
She added: 'Nobody should be surprised by the President's position that Iran absolutely cannot obtain a nuclear weapon. He's been unequivocally clear about this for decades."
However, Israel will not wait long for Trump's decision to strike Iran and could attack the Fordow Nuclear Plant itself, the country's Channel 12 media reports.
It said that if Trump does not intervene, Israel will take the initiative to attack the enrichment facility, which is at the heart of Tehran's nuclear program.
A daring special forces raid to obliterate the site is reportedly being considered Te; Aviv.
But risks are huge and would be a challenge for even the Israel Defence Forces' battle-hardened elite troops.
A ground attack on Fordow would be on a scale never before attempted and involve flying or parachuting in scores of troops and sabotage specialists.
Israeli special forces conducted a similar raid last September when they destroyed an underground missile factory in Syria in two hours by planting and detonating explosives.
Israel said its airstrikes on Iran will not stop until it destroys the regime's capability of enriching uranium to weapons-grade and making a nuclear weapon.
If given the go-ahead by Trump, the US would join Israel in pounding Iran's nuke sites, which Tehran has warned would spark "all-out war".
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Israel Katz branded Ayatollah Ali Khamenei the "modern Hitler" who "should not continue to exist" while visiting the site of a missile strike near Tel Aviv.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
34 minutes ago
- Reuters
UK foreign secretary to attend Geneva talks on Iran nuclear programme
June 19 (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary David Lammy will travel to Geneva on Friday for talks with his French and German counterparts, as well as EU High Representative Kaja Kallas and Iran's foreign minister, to push for a diplomatic resolution over Iran's nuclear programme, its foreign ministry said on Thursday. The meeting comes amid heightened tensions in the Middle East and follows Lammy's visit to Washington, where he met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff. "A window now exists within the next two weeks to achieve a diplomatic solution," Lammy said in the foreign ministry statement.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Trump gives Iran two-week deadline to surrender and reveals exactly how close Ayatollah is to a nuclear bomb
President Donald Trump will decide whether or not to strike Iran in the next two weeks, press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Thursday. She said the president was still holding out on a diplomatic solution, though wouldn't provide details about what U.S.-Iran talks would look like. Leavitt read a direct statement to reporters from Trump at the top of her briefing. '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, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks,' the Trump statement read. Leavitt also said she welcomed a question when a journalist asked if Iran was a few weeks away from 'obtaining enough enriched uranium to start building a weapon' or 'completing production of a weapon.' 'Let's be very clear, Iran has all that it needs to achieve a nuclear weapon,' Leavitt answered. 'All they need is a decision from the Supreme Leader to do that.' 'And it would take a couple of weeks to complete the production of that weapon, which would, of course, pose an existential threat not just to Israel but to the United States and to the entire world,' Leavitt continued. The world has been awaiting Trump's decision on whether he'll join Israel's current war with Iran, which has now stretched a week. In particular, Israel has wanted U.S. assistance with bombing Iran's Fordow nuclear site. But the idea of military action against Iran has gotten Trump in trouble some some factions of the MAGA right, after he promised as a candidate to get the United States out of 'forever wars' and pledged 'World War III' wouldn't occur under his watch. 'Trust in President Trump,' she said, when asked near the top of the briefing what the president's message is to everyday Trump supporters, who might be skeptical of any military action. She said the U.S. was now looking for a deal with Iran that would include 'no enrichment of uranium' and reiterated that Iran wouldn't be allowed to have a nuclear weapon. 'With respect to Iran, nobody should be surprised by the president's position that Iran absolutely cannot obtain a nuclear weapon,' Leavitt also said. Leavitt also said the previous deal on the table through Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff was 'both realistic and acceptable.' She wouldn't give much more detail on when diplomatic talks might happen. 'Out of respect for the ongoing discussions and negotiations, I am not going to get into the details of them. We've provided you confirmation,' Leavitt said. Witkoff was spotted by CNN alongside other Trump advisers at the White House on Thursday, with Leavitt suggesting he wouldn't be heading to Geneva, where the Europeans are scheduled to have talks with an Iranian delegation on Friday. Oman had previously hosted U.S.-Iran talks and three Iranian planes had been spotted landing in the capital of Muscat on Wednesday. 'As for correspondence between the United States and the Iranians, I can confirm that correspondence has continued. As you know, we were engaged with six rounds of negotiations with them in both indirect and direct ways,' Leavitt answered. Trump had also pitched the Iranians coming to see him at the White House. One reporter pointed out that if an Iranian delegation could get as far as Geneva, could they be coming to Washington as well? 'I am not going to get into hypotheticals,' Leavitt answered. 'But as you heard from the president yesterday, they have expressed interest in doing that.'
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Dodgers say immigration agents denied entry to Los Angeles stadium
The Los Angeles Dodgers say they blocked federal agents from entering their stadium on Thursday, as protests against immigration enforcement continue in the a post on social media, the baseball team said "ICE agents came to Dodger Stadium and requested permission to access the parking lots", and were subsequently turned Angeles is among the cities where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have ramped up raids to find and deport undocumented migrants. ICE responded to the Dodgers statement on X: "False. We were never there." The Department of Homeland Security too issued a statement saying the agents' presence at the stadium "had nothing to do with the Dodgers"."CBP vehicles were in the stadium parking lot very briefly, unrelated to any operation or enforcement," DHS said. It is unclear why the officials were at the comes as Dodgers are expected to announce that they will assist immigrants who have been impacted by the raids in the city, US media details have been disclosed, but it would be the team's first official response to the raids. Dodgers player Kiké Hernández took to Instagram to voice his criticism of the raids on Los Angeles, saying he is "saddened and infuriated by what's happening in our country and our city". "This is my second home. And I cannot stand to see our community being violated, profiled, abused and ripped apart," he said. The crackdown in Los Angeles is part of President Donald Trump's policy to be tougher on immigration. The move has sparked massive protests, prompting Trump to send 700 US Marines and 4,000 National Guard troops to the Los Angeles area to support the federal response to the raids in America's second-biggest city are unfolding against the backdrop of an aggressive push to raise arrest and deportation numbers, as the administration has been disappointed with its current White House border czar Tom Homan said on Thursday that the Trump administration will resume immigration raids at worksites. "The message is clear: we're going to continue conducting worksite enforcement operations, including on farms and in hotels, but on a prioritised basis. Criminals come first," Homan told statement comes days after DHS announced reversing recent guidance that called for a pause on operations at those places.
