Donald Trump defended the war in Iran by claiming that Israel — and possibly the wider Middle East — would no longer exist if he were not President. His remarks aired on Fox News on the same night that US and Iranian attacks escalated again following a weeks-long pause in the six-month conflict. Trump described Iran’s government as “violent, evil people” and repeated his position that Tehran must never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon. “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,” he said. Trump also argued that Iran alienated allies and countries that had previously remained “sort of neutral” once the fighting began. “As soon as the shooting started, they started aiming at Saudi Arabia, Qatar, at UAE, at Bahrain, at Kuwait, everybody was shocked. I was surprised.” He said that, from his perspective, one consequence was favorable because Iran had “lost all of the support they had.”

Trump said Iran’s actions toward neighboring nations reinforced his belief that “if they would have had a nuclear weapon, they would have fired it.” He added: “I think the Middle East would have essentially been gone but Israel definitely would have been gone and I guess we would be next, or Europe or someplace.” The President again vowed that Iran would not be allowed to develop such a weapon, saying: “You cannot let them have a nuclear weapon and they won’t have a nuclear weapon.” His comments came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the possibility of a diplomatic agreement with Iran while endorsing Trump’s latest economic campaign earlier this week.

At an event in Jerusalem for Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, Netanyahu said he had told Trump during a White House meeting last month: “I doubt that an agreement can be reached with that group there, with those savages. I tell you – an agreement cannot be reached.” Netanyahu said the two leaders also discussed the possibility of renewed military action against Iran. “We will not allow Iran to attack us, and if, God forbid, they attack us, they will suffer a blow beyond anything they have imagined– far stronger than anything they have suffered until now,” he said. The prime minister also praised Trump’s new initiative after the President on Monday announced what he called “economic D-Day,” a campaign aimed at crippling Iran’s economy.

Earlier in the week, Trump said he was “not in a hurry” to bring Iran back to negotiations, arguing that the country’s leadership is under severe pressure. “They’re not paying their troops. They’re in deep trouble. They have very little capacity,” Trump told reporters Thursday. He also dismissed the prospect of immediate talks, saying: “We don’t want to speak to them. We’re not looking to meet or anything.”

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Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, called on leaders of Muslim nations to “know your real enemy, understand its plans and confront it,” while describing the US and Israel as enemies of all Islamic nations, according to the official IRNA news agency on Sunday. Six months after US and Israeli attacks on Iran killed Khamenei’s father and other senior leaders, the younger Khamenei has still not appeared in public. His remarks were delivered in a letter to religious leaders attending a conference in Tehran. On Sunday, US forces carried out their first strikes on Iran in more than a month, targeting two rocket launchers on the Strait of Hormuz, while Tehran responded by attacking American forces in Jordan.

The fresh fury erupts after forces with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) were seen preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the strait, Central Command spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins confirmed to The Daily Mail. ‘US forces are monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce through this essential waterway,’ Hawkins said. The US military last week completed clearing sea mines from the strait’s international shipping routes, he added. Iranian news outlets reported sounds of explosions near Larak Island on the strait. The IRGC in a statement carried by Iran’s state broadcaster noted ‘the martyrdom and injury of several of our fighters and compatriots.’ The statement said the attack will ‘result in punishment of the aggressor.’ Shortly following the US strikes, Fox News reported that Iranian forces were attacking American troops stationed in Jordan. Almost all of the incoming missiles have been intercepted and there have been no significant impacts, Fox said. The fighting comes just days after the Trump administration said it would turn its focus to increasing economic pressure – rather than military action – to try to end its war with Iran. Secretary Scott Bessent told ​Reuters Sunday that the Treasury Department is likely ​to unveil new secondary sanctions ‌aimed at increasing economic pressure on Iran.

Bessent announced the measure after imposing penalties on the ⁠United Arab Emirates branches of Egypt’s ​Banque Misr on Friday over alleged ​financial links to Iran. The shifting strategy centers on threats to punish any country or entity that continues to conduct business with Tehran. The turn to using sanctions as the cudgel of choice comes as the administration weighs diminished munitions stockpiles after months of war, sparking concerns that the prolonged conflict could undermine US military readiness in other parts of the globe. Trump has consistently emphasized that the US and Israel campaign has been devastating for Iran´s navy and air force. Iranian officials have said the country has suffered $270 billion in direct and indirect damage. Israeli military strikes in the first weeks of the war wiped out much of the theocratic government’s leadership structure. But Iran has found leverage through its own strikes in the critical Strait of Hormuz where relatively few vessels carrying oil and liquefied natural gas are risking passage. Iran still has enough drones and missiles to fire at vessels transiting the vital energy waterway, through which 20 percent of the world’s oil normally flows, effectively controlling much of the traffic in the strait.

Trump has repeatedly declared that the ‘Strait of Hormuz is open,’ saying 24 vessels passed through last week. But that´s a fraction of the roughly 130 vessels that passed through the vital waterway daily before the war began. Earlier on Sunday, a multinational coalition overseen by the US Navy said commercial traffic through the strait remained at ‘reduced levels.’ And a monitoring agency run by the British military said an unknown projectile struck a tanker ship on Saturday north of Khasab, Oman, in the strait. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organization said the ship had been moving inbound and no casualties or environmental impact had been reported. It cited unspecified military authorities. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. A return to open conflict would be dangerous for the region, where Iran has targeted US military bases and infrastructure in Gulf countries since the war began on February 28. The last time the US military confirmed targeting Iran was on July 29, when it announced a ‘heavy wave of strikes’ on dozens of Revolutionary Guard targets including coastal surveillance and defense sites. On August 1, Trump said he would order the military to hold off on new strikes at the urging of Gulf allies Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.