President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House that the US launched heavy strikes on Iran on Tuesday and would strike 'hard today' as well, saying negotiations are taking too long and that Iran is 'dragging its feet.' The president linked the renewed attacks to the downing of a US Apache helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz several days ago. US Central Command announced a new wave of what it called 'self-defense strikes' in Iran in response to 'unprovoked Iranian aggression,' according to White House reporter Marie Otsu of NTD.
President Donald Trump on Tuesday accused Iran of dragging its feet on negotiations, telling reporters at the White House that the US is striking 'hard today' after hitting Tehran 'hard yesterday.' The remarks, reported by NTD correspondent Marie Otsu, add a diplomatic accusation to the administration's latest wave of military action. As The Zioneer reported at 20:16, Trump had earlier confirmed consecutive days of heavy strikes and linked them to the downing of a US Apache helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz days ago. At 20:16, Trump also gave a Fox News interview with additional strike details and fresh threats. At the same time, CENTCOM disabled a second oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, enforcing the naval blockade that was first reported in the initial version of this thread.
Across the thread, source quality held steady at on-record presidential statements and official CENTCOM announcements. The initial report at 20:16 cited Trump's vow to 'attack them very hard' and CENTCOM's interdiction of a second tanker. The subsequent version at 20:16 confirmed the tanker action as new, while the Fox interview at 20:16 added threat details. The current update — also at 20:16 — layers in Trump's accusation of stalling talks, reinforcing a 'negotiating under fire' strategy that The Zioneer reported earlier at 19:14 based on an Israeli defense analyst's assessment.
Attributed context, as The Zioneer reported at 02:16 Jerusalem, holds that US officials say Trump has not abandoned diplomacy and is using Qatari mediators to distinguish the strikes from all-out war. A senior American official told reporters at 15:00 that Trump is frustrated and losing patience. An i24NEWS report cited at 23:39 noted the White House is weighing a short-duration campaign to break the deadlock.
What remains open: the exact scope of the current strikes — whether they hit the infrastructure targets Trump warned about at 14:07 — and Iran's response to the president's new ultimatum.
6 developments
- DevelopingTrump: 'No president has ever been tougher on Iran' — self-assessment as US campaign continues
- DevelopingIn response to reporter, Trump says Iran 'wants a deal more than I do' — they've 'taken hits'
- StrongTrump: I think Iranians want a deal — but we will see
- DevelopingWhite House sources: Trump furious his strikes on Iran are seen as insufficient
Source and signal
- Internal intake