Trump declares US readiness to continue strikes on Iran for up to five weeks
US President Donald Trump has said that strikes on Iran could continue for "four or five weeks." He made the comments in an interview with The New York Times. The American leader also posted a new message on his social media platform Truth Social, calling on Iranian security forces to lay down their arms.
According to Trump, it will not be difficult for Israel and the United States to maintain the intensity of hostilities during the specified period. "We have a tremendous amount of ammunition. You know, we have ammunition stored all over the world, in different countries," The New York Times quoted him as saying.
Trump also shared his thoughts on how power might be transferred in Iran. Among the options, he mentioned a scenario similar to that in Venezuela, where after the capture of Nicolas Maduro, most of the government remained in office and began cooperating with the United States. The president added that he has "three very good options" for candidates to lead Iran, but declined to name them.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump called the joint strikes on Iran with Israel one of the "most powerful military operations in world history." He claimed to have hit "hundreds of targets in Iran," including air defence systems, nine ships and buildings belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
"The former leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, is dead. This brutal man has the blood of hundreds and thousands of Americans on his hands, and he is responsible for the deaths of countless people in various countries. Last night, we heard the joy of the people in the streets of Iran celebrating his death," Trump said.
The president again called the prospect of Iran acquiring intercontinental missiles and nuclear weapons a threat "to every American." Last week, speaking before Congress, he said that Iran would soon unveil a missile capable of reaching the United States, which was not confirmed by intelligence data.
At the end of his address, Trump called on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Iranian military and the police to lay down their arms.
Since the start of hostilities, at least three American servicemen have been killed and five more wounded. According to Axios, Trump's address came a few hours after this information was officially confirmed.
In his video address, the president said that "unfortunately, this is likely to happen again before it's over."
