President Trump on Saturday said Iran is begging for an end to the war, but he’s holding off because the terms of a potential deal floated by Tehran “aren’t good enough.”
Trump said any terms with Iran will have to be “very solid” before he’ll agree to end the US-Israel military campaign — and even questioned whether new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is still alive in an interview with NBC News.
“Iran wants to make a deal, and I don’t want to make it because the terms aren’t good enough yet,” he told the outlet, adding that any agreement would require Iran to completely abandon any nuclear ambitions.
“The only power they have, and it’s a power that can be closed off relatively quickly, is the power of dropping a mine or shooting a relatively short-range missile. But when we get finished with the shoreline, they’re not going to have that power either,” the president continued.
“We’ve knocked out most of their missiles. We’ve knocked out most of their drones. We knocked out their manufacturing of missiles and drones, largely. Within two days, it’ll be totally decimated.”
The president also questioned whether Khamenei is even alive, noting that the new leader has been mostly out of public view — even issuing his first statement on state TV without appearing on camera, a break from tradition.
The skepticism comes amid reports that he was in a coma and had his leg amputated after being severely injured in the US-Israeli strikes that killed his father and other family members.
“So far, nobody’s been able to show him,” Trump told the outlet.
“I’m hearing that he’s not alive, and if he is, he should do something very smart for his country, and that’s surrender.”
Khamenei was named the new supreme leader last Sunday after the initial wave of strikes killed his father.
