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WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Tuesday the U.S. knows wherever Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is hiding during the Israel-Iran struggle but doesn’t privation him killed “for now.”
Trump urged, successful a societal media posting, Iran's “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER” arsenic the five-day struggle continues to escalate.
“We cognize precisely wherever the alleged ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding,” Trump added. “He is an casual target, but is harmless determination - We are not going to instrumentality him retired (kill!), astatine slightest not for now. But we don’t privation missiles changeable astatine civilians, oregon American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin.”
Trump's progressively muscular comments toward the Iranian authorities travel aft helium urged Tehran’s 9.5 cardinal residents to fly for their lives arsenic helium chopped abbreviated his information successful an planetary acme to instrumentality to Washington for urgent talks with his nationalist information team.
The comments astir Khamenei and calls for surrender came soon aft Trump successful a abstracted posting touted implicit power of the skies implicit Tehran.
Trump successful the opening days of the struggle rejected a program presented by Israel to termination Khamenei, according to a U.S. authoritative acquainted with the matter, who was not authorized to remark connected the delicate substance and spoke connected the information of anonymity.
The Israelis had informed the Trump medication that they had developed a credible program to termination Khamenei. But White House officials informed the Israelis that Trump opposed specified a move. Administration officials were acrophobic that the program to termination Khamenei could enflame the struggle and perchance destabilize the region.
Trump returned to the White House from his abbreviated travel to the Group of Seven acme successful the Canadian Rockies aboriginal Tuesday astatine a infinitesimal of choosing successful his presidency.
Israel, with 5 days of rocket strikes, has done sizeable harm to Iran and believes it tin present woody a imperishable stroke to Tehran's atomic programme — peculiarly if it gets a small much assistance from the Republican president.
But deepening American involvement, possibly by providing the Israelis with bunker-busting bombs to penetrate Iranian atomic sites built heavy underground oregon offering different nonstop U.S. subject support, comes with tremendous governmental hazard for Trump.
Trump, arsenic helium made his mode backmost to Washington, expressed vexation with Iranian leaders for failing to scope an agreement. He said helium was present looking for “a existent end” to the struggle and a “complete give-up” of Tehran's atomic program.
“They should person done the deal. I told them, ‘Do the deal,’” Trump told reporters connected Air Force One. “So I don’t know. I’m not excessively overmuch successful the temper to negotiate.”
Iran has insisted that its atomic programme is for peaceful purposes only, and U.S. quality agencies person assessed that Tehran is not actively pursuing a bomb.
Trump, who held a Situation Room gathering with advisers connected Tuesday afternoon, has been gradually gathering the nationalist lawsuit for a much nonstop American relation successful the conflict. His displacement successful code comes arsenic the U.S. has repositioned warships and subject craft successful the portion to respond if the struggle betwixt Israel and Iran further escalates.
Meanwhile, the State Department created a peculiar task unit to assistance Americans seeking to permission Israel and different Mideast countries, though nary authorities evacuations are presently planned. There are immoderate 700,000 Americans, galore of them dual U.S.-Israeli citizens, present successful Israel and thousands much successful different Mideast countries, including Iran.
Trump made an aboriginal departure from G7
Trump near the G7 acme a afloat time aboriginal truthful helium could instrumentality to Washington to absorption his attraction connected the Mideast crisis. Trump, portion astatine the summit, besides raised alarms erstwhile helium urged Iranians with a societal media posting to “immediately evacuate Tehran.”
Asked astir his evacuation comment, Trump told reporters: “I conscionable privation radical to beryllium safe.”
Trump said helium wasn't ruling retired a diplomatic enactment and helium could nonstop Vice President JD Vance and peculiar envoy Steve Witkoff to conscionable with the Iranians.
He besides dismissed legislature grounds from National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard, who told lawmakers successful March that U.S. spy agencies did not judge Iran was gathering a atomic weapon.
“I don’t attraction what she said," Trump said. "I deliberation they were precise adjacent to having it.”
Gabbard connected Tuesday brushed disconnected the inconsistency, blaming the media for misconstruing her earlier grounds and asserting that “President Trump was saying the aforesaid happening that I said."
Speculation grows that Trump whitethorn beryllium tilting toward much nonstop involvement
The Israelis accidental their violative has eviscerated Iran's aerial defenses and they tin present onslaught targets crossed the state astatine will. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the Israeli bombardment volition proceed until Iran's atomic programme and ballistic missiles are destroyed.
So far, Israel has targeted aggregate Iranian atomic programme sites but has not been capable to destruct Iran’s Fordo uranium enrichment facility.
The tract is buried heavy underground — and to destruct it, Israel whitethorn request the 30,000-pound GBU-57 Massive Ordnance Penetrator, which uses its value and sheer kinetic unit to scope profoundly buried targets and past explode. But Israel does not person the munition oregon the bomber needed to present it — the penetrator is presently delivered by the B-2 stealth bomber.
Israel’s ain defenses stay mostly intact successful the look of Iran's retaliatory strikes, but immoderate of Tehran's missiles are getting done and having deadly impact.
Trump and Netanyahu spoke by telephone connected Tuesday astir the evolving situation, according to a White House authoritative who was not authorized to remark publically and spoke connected the information of anonymity.
A widening schism implicit Iran among Trump's MAGA supporters
Trump bristled erstwhile asked astir immoderate of his MAGA faithful, including blimpish pundit Tucker Carlson, who person suggested that further U.S. engagement would beryllium a betrayal to supporters who were drawn to his committedness to extremity U.S. engagement successful costly and endless wars.
“Somebody delight explicate to kooky Tucker Carlson that,’ IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON!’” the president wrote connected societal media.
Other salient Trump supporters and Republican lawmakers person besides raised concerns astir however acold the president should spell successful backing Israel.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, erstwhile Trump advisor Steve Bannon and Turning Point USA laminitis Charlie Kirk are among salient Trump World allies who person noted that voters backed Trump due to the fact that helium promised not to entangle the federation successful overseas clashes and to beryllium wary of expanding U.S. engagement successful the Mideast conflict.
And Reps. Thomas Massie, a Republican from Kentucky, and Ro Khanna, a California Democrat, introduced a solution connected Tuesday that calls connected Trump to “terminate” the usage of U.S. equipped forces against Iran unless “explicitly authorized” by a declaration of warfare from Congress.
In a Tuesday posting connected X, Vance said helium wanted to code “a batch of brainsick worldly connected societal media” astir Trump’s attack to Iran.
Vance made the lawsuit that Trump has been accordant that “Iran cannot person uranium enrichment” and has said “repeatedly that this would hap 1 of 2 ways — the casual mode oregon the ‘other’ way.”
There are besides Trump backers, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who are making the lawsuit that this is Trump's infinitesimal to present a decisive stroke to Iran. Graham is calling for Trump to "go all-in” successful backing Israel and destroying Iran’s atomic program.
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Associated Press writers Josh Boak, Tara Copp, Kevin Freking, David Klepper, Matthew Lee, Darlene Superville and Will Weissert contributed to this report.
