Donald Trump issued a stark warning in just four words as he justified the war against Iran. Trump declared "Israel would be gone" if he were not president, adding "there would probably be no Middle East".
US strikes in the Strait of Hormuz
His claim came as the US escalated attacks on the Islamic Republic, targeting Iranian rocket launchers in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday (August 30). It marked the first military action in roughly a month. Iran stated it retaliated by launching missiles at US sites in Jordan.
Iranian state TV broadcast what it claimed were ballistic missiles being launched by Iran at US bases in Jordan. Jordan's armed forces reported they intercepted eight missiles which entered the country's airspace early on Monday (August 31), reports the Express.
US response and Iranian casualties
US military officials refuted Iranian claims its strikes were an act of aggression, describing them as a "limited, precise action" against what they said were Iranian mine-laying forces.
Semi-official news outlets in Iran reported sounds of explosions near Larak island in the Strait. The Revolutionary Guard in a statement carried by Iran's state broadcaster acknowledged "the martyrdom and injury of several of our fighters and compatriots".
Trump's nuclear warning
Trump told Fox News the Iranian leadership were "violent" and "evil" individuals as he insisted Iran could never be permitted to develop a nuclear weapon. He informed the broadcaster: "If they had a nuclear weapon, Israel would be gone. If I weren't President, Israel would be gone and there would probably be no Middle East."
Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has called on the leaders of Muslim nations to "know your real enemy, understand its plans and confront it", as reported by the official IRNA news agency.
However, Trump maintained that Iran has alienated all of its allies and those who had previously adopted a neutral stance towards the country.
