Donald Trump has spoken out for the first time on the three US service members who were killed in the Middle East.
Donald Trump has broken his silence after three US servicemembers were killed in the fighting in the Middle East.
Three members of the US military have been killed and five others wounded in the ongoing attacks against Iran, the Pentagon said Sunday. These are the first American deaths in the joint US-Israeli operation, reports the Mirror.
“They’re great people,” the President told the Daily Mail. “And, you know, we expect that to happen, unfortunately. Could happen continuous – it could happen again.”
Trump acknowledged the three deaths are the first in his second term, adding: “We’ve done pretty well. But they’re great people, with outstanding records, outstanding.” The president is due to meet the families of the deceased servicemembers “at the appropriate time” following his return to Washington later today.
He also said he wasn’t surprised by any of the outcomes of the joint operation so far, adding that “I think it’s going as per planned”.
“You know, other than we took our their entire leadership – far, far more than we thought. Looks like 48,” Trump said.
On Saturday, American missiles rained down on Tehran to target its regime, killing supreme leader Ali Khamenei in the attacks. Reports said the 86-year-old’s body had been recovered from rubble.
While Tehran retaliated, striking Dubai, Kuwait and Bahrain in an apparent revenge, Trump celebrated the death of the leader, writing “justice” had been served.
However, the president warned the “heavy and pinpoint bombing” would continue “uninterrupted” for “as long as necessary”. The joint US-Israeli mission, dubbed Operation Epic Fury, continued to wage on into its second day today.
Earlier today, Trump also told The Atlantic the country’s new leaders want to speak to him. “They want to talk, and I have agreed to talk, so I will be talking to them,” Trump said. “They should have done it sooner. They should have given what was very practical and easy to do sooner. They waited too long.”
He also revealed he had spoken with leaders of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Jordan and a “couple of others”, stating Saudi Arabia is “fighting too”.
“It’ll be very interesting to watch,” he added when asked if democracy could emerge in Iran. “But a lot of things could happen and a lot of very positive things could happen.”
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