Trump: "The Confrontation with Iran is Going Well, We Are Hitting Them Hard"
US President Donald Trump stated that the confrontation with Iran is progressing successfully, noting that Tehran's military capabilities have been largely eliminated within five months. A cabinet meeting is underway at Camp David.
US President Donald Trump stated that the confrontation with Iran is "going well" and asserted that American forces are "hitting them hard." According to him, "in the end," Iran will have no choice but to "go home" — as an expression of surrender.
Against the backdrop of tensions, Trump is holding a cabinet meeting today (Friday) at Camp David. "It's going well. All you can do is keep winning," Trump told Fox News. "We are hitting them hard, shaking them up, and we just keep winning." Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland, is hosting the cabinet meeting for the first time in Trump's second term. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt noted that this is the 13th meeting of the current term and the first to be filmed and broadcast live.
"We have eliminated Iran's capabilities. Maybe they have a little bit left, but soon they won't," he said at the start of the meeting. "Missiles, they have a few more, but much less than they had. Production capabilities have almost disappeared, drone capabilities have almost disappeared. This is a much bigger job than we expected at the beginning. We have been operating there for five months. In Vietnam, it was 20 years, in Afghanistan and Korea, many years. We have eliminated their military capabilities in five months."
Secretary of State Marco Rubio later addressed the International Criminal Court in The Hague, calling it an "illegitimate organization. They claim that even those who are not members are subject to it. In the future, American soldiers and leaders could find themselves being pursued. They are arrogant." President Trump interrupted him and said: "There is no information that they are trying to catch me. It could happen. He is not trying to protect me, but Bibi and a few other people. But there is no indication that I am one of them at the moment."
Rubio continued, noting that the deal between Israel and Lebanon is unprecedented, as it is the first time these governments have spoken in decades. Regarding the agreement with Hamas, he said: "This is a big step, something many people did not believe would happen, they thought it was unattainable."
The British Telegraph reported today that the US and Israel are discussing the possibility of a land blockade of Iran. According to the report, this proposal is one of several options being considered by Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to increase economic pressure on the regime. It is estimated that Trump and Netanyahu discussed increasing economic pressure on Iran through "kinetic and non-kinetic means" during their meeting in the Oval Office on Tuesday.
Before the meeting, the Peace Council for Gaza published a "roadmap" for implementing Trump's peace agreement. The 15-point plan establishes a gradual, time-limited, and internationally monitored process for disarming terrorist organizations and militias, as well as for a full Israeli withdrawal from the Strip. The plan establishes the principle of "one authority, one law, one weapon," with all civil and security powers to be transferred to the "National Committee for the Administration of Gaza" (NCAG).
