LIVE: US President Donald Trump begins his address on Iran
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that no Americans were harmed in the attack by Iran on US bases in Iraq as he offered to embrace peace along with the Iranian leadership, in a significant move to de-escalate spiralling tensions in the Middle East. His remarks came hours after Iran launched over a dozen ballistic missiles in a pre-dawn attack on Wednesday targeting at least two bases where US military and coalition forces' are stationed in Iraq, which Tehran said was a "slap in the face" of America.
Donald Trump Iran Speech HIGHLIGHTS:
10:07 pm: "ISIS is a natural enemy of Iran, fall of ISIS is in Iran's interest"
10:05 pm: "USA does not need middle eastern oil"
10:03 pm: Trump urges world powers to come out of nuclear deal made with Iran
10:01 pm: Trump calls nuclear deal "foloish"
10:01 pm: "Soleimani's hands were drenched in American and Iranian blood"
10:00 pm: " No American lives were lost in Iran attack," says Trump
10:00 pm: "Minimal damage was sustained by US in Iran Attack"
10:00 pm: "As long as I am President, Iran will not be allowed to have nuclear weapons"
09:55 pm: US President Donald Trump began his address to nation.
US President Donald Trump began his address to the media at 11 AM EST (9.30 pm IST) for the first time following Iran's rocket attacks at US military airbase in Al-Assad, Iraq. Iranian media claimed that the ballistic missile attack killed "80 American terrorists". The United States so far has not reacted to the latest reports from Baghdad and Tehran. Earlier, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khomeini called Iran's attack as a "slap" on the United States of America.
WATCH DONALD TRUMP LIVE:
The Iranian strikes came days after Trump authorized the targeted killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Quds Force. Iran had pledged to retaliate, though its actions did not appear to result in any American casualties, according to a U.S. official. The missiles targeted two bases — one in the northern Iraqi city in Irbil and the other at Ain al-Asad in western Iraq.
The strikes pushed Tehran and Washington perilously close to war and put the world’s attention on Trump as he weighs whether to respond with more military force. The Republican president huddled with his national security advisers on Tuesday night but offered no immediate indication of whether he would retaliate. “All is well!” he said in a tweet.
The Iranian strikes came days after Trump authorized the targeted killing of Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Quds Force. Iran had pledged to retaliate, though its actions did not appear to result in any American casualties, according to a U.S. official. The missiles targeted two bases — one in the northern Iraqi city in Irbil and the other at Ain al-Asad in western Iraq.
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