Trump Says He May Consider Ground Forces in Iran as Strikes Continue
"I don't have the yips with respect to boots on the ground — like every president says, 'There will be no boots on the ground.' I don't say it," Trump told a news agency, noting he would consider it "if they were necessary."
In a separate statement to a news outlet, Trump described the operation as going "well" but cautioned that the most intense attacks were still ahead. "We haven't even started hitting them hard. The big wave hasn't even happened. The big one is coming soon," he said.
The president highlighted Iran’s unexpected retaliatory strikes against neighboring Arab states, including Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, and the UAE. "We told them, 'We've got this,' and now they want to fight," he claimed. "They were going to be very little involved and now they insist on being involved."
Trump also updated his previous statement regarding Iranian casualties, increasing the number of leaders killed from 48 to 49. He stressed that the U.S. is supporting the Iranian population beyond military operations and urged civilians to stay indoors for their safety. On Sunday, he called on Iranians to rise up and "seize this moment ... and take back your country."
The remarks came as the joint U.S.-Israeli campaign, which began Saturday, entered its third day. The strikes killed several senior Iranian officials, including supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In response, Tehran launched drone and missile attacks targeting several Gulf nations, primarily U.S. military bases. Since the start of the campaign, four U.S. service members have been killed and 18 others seriously injured, according to official statements and media reports, with further casualties expected.
Earlier, CENTCOM reported that three U.S. F-15E Strike Eagles supporting the operation went down over Kuwait due to an "apparent friendly fire incident." All six crew members ejected safely and were recovered in stable condition.
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