The Media Line: President Trump Denies Claims Israel Dragged US Into War, Says Iran’s Capabilities Are Being ‘Knocked Out’  

President Trump Denies Claims Israel Dragged US Into War, Says Iran’s Capabilities Are Being ‘Knocked Out’  

By The Media Line Staff  

President Trump dismissed the notion that Israel pressured the US into war, stressing the idea that the Iranian regime, which he characterized as “lunatics,” was more likely to strike first.  

“We were having negotiations with these lunatics, and it was my opinion that [the Iranians] were going to attack first,” he responded to a reporter in the Oval Office during a press conference on Tuesday with German Chancellor Frederick Merz.  

“They were going to attack. If we didn’t do it, they were going to attack first. I felt strongly about that,” Trump said of Iran.  

“So if anything, I might have forced Israel’s hand,” he added.  

However, the Pentagon on Sunday told Congress that it did not have intelligence indicating that Iran was planning a preemptive strike.  

The question arose after US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, briefing key lawmakers on Monday, indicated that the US began its military operation against Iran on the belief that Israel was planning to initiate a strike.  

At the same press conference, President Trump said that Iran’s capabilities were being exhausted by the war: “Just about everything’s been knocked out. So we’ll see how we do.”  

He also discussed the possibility that regime change may not go as expected if someone worse than deceased Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei takes over Iran.  

“I guess the worst case would be—we do this, and then somebody takes over who’s as bad as the previous person … That could happen.”  

Khamenei was assassinated during US-Israeli strikes on Tehran that began Feb. 28.  

“We’d like to see somebody in there that’s going to bring it back for the people,” Trump added.  

He warned against Iranians taking to the streets while the bombing is ongoing.  

When asked about the possibility of exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi governing the country, the president responded that he seemed like a nice guy but would prefer to see someone who is currently living in Iran.