by Julia Manchester
Mar 16, 2024
President Trump insisted on Monday that Israel would not use a nuclear weapon in Iran after he was asked about one his advisers warning of such a potential risk.
“Israel wouldn’t do that. Israel would never do that,” Trump told reporters in the White House East Room on Monday.
Trump was asked about recent comments made by his artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency czar David Saks in which he warned of the “risks” in an “escalatory approach” when it comes to the war in Iran.
“Israel could get seriously destroyed,” Saks told the “All In” podcast. “And then you have to worry about Israel escalating the war by contemplating using a nuclear weapon.”
Trump said on Monday that Saks had not shared that assessment with him.
The comments come as the U.S. and Israel continue their bombardment of Iran, which began late last month.
The Israeli Defense Force said on Sunday that it plans to continue its strikes on Iran for at least three more weeks.
IDF spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin told CNN in an interview that Israel has “thousands of targets ahead.”
“We are ready, in coordination with our U.S. allies, with plans through at least the Jewish holiday of Passover, about three weeks from now. And we have deeper plans for even three weeks beyond that,” Defrin said.
U.S. and Israeli strikes have taken out dozens of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commanders and have killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
While neither Israel nor the U.S. has put boots on the ground in Iran, Trump has not ruled out the option.
When asked by reporters on Friday about a timeline for U.S. involvement in the war, Trump said “it’ll be as long as necessary.”
“They’ve been decimated. Their country’s in bad shape. The whole thing is collapsing,” he said, referring to Iran.
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