Israel
Trump says US could hit remaining Iran nuclear sites 'in 10 minutes'
By Jewish Life Staff, . Jewish Life.
President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States could strike what remains of Iran's nuclear program within minutes, even as his top diplomat said no such order had been given and Tehran warned of sweeping retaliation.
"There are 'one or two sites' left that need to be dealt with, including Pickaxe Mountain," Trump said, according to The Jerusalem Post. "We can do it in ten minutes. We have a plan for it, and we can execute it very quickly." Pickaxe Mountain is a suspected underground nuclear facility near Natanz.
What Trump said, and what Rubio clarified
Speaking to reporters at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Trump described negotiations with Iran as "going fine" while calling Tehran "not very reliable," JNS reported. He said at the White House on Friday that Iran was struggling to pay its security forces and that the situation amounted to a war, but "not a typical war."
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking at the G20 meeting in Atlanta, said Trump "hasn't made a decision" on whether to resume strikes and prefers a diplomatic resolution, Fox News reported, as cited by JNS. Rubio accused Tehran of backing Hezbollah, the Houthis and Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, calling that support "a fundamental threat" to Middle East stability.
Iran's response and internal signals
Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Saturday ordered the country's armed forces to prepare for what state-affiliated Iranian Students' News Agency and Reuters separately described as "an immediate, impactful, and geographically unrestricted response" to any attack, JNS reported.
Iranian Chief of Staff General Ali Abdollahi warned that Iran had broadened its list of potential targets and that another American strike would draw a broad response, the Jerusalem Post reported. He said Iran would determine when any new war ended.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said a letter from U.S. Vice President JD Vance had reached Tehran but that no formal reply had been sent, according to the state-run IRNA news agency, as cited by JNS. Rezaei said Washington's tone had "completely changed," calling that "a very good sign." Trump said Wednesday he had not directed Vance to send the letter, describing it as an effort to help Iran obtain medical supplies.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking to Al Jazeera on Saturday, said Iran's leadership was examining Vance's letter and described it as "a positive step," while adding that no plans existed at that stage for a meeting with U.S. officials.
Economic pressure running in parallel
A Treasury Department report obtained by Axios found that a U.S. naval blockade, sanctions and blocked overland export routes had severely damaged Iran's economy. Since the pressure campaign began in August, the Iranian rial had lost roughly a quarter of its value; annual inflation reached 90 percent in September; and no oil had been loaded onto tankers since August 25, the report said. The Treasury report did not argue the regime was close to collapse.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is urging Trump to allow the campaign, which the report called "Operation Economic Outcast," more time before returning to military action, Axios reported. U.S. officials told Axios that additional time could further destabilize the regime and encourage Iranian leaders to make concessions in negotiations.
The Jerusalem Post reported that Trump spoke by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the United States prepares options, and that Trump had met with senior military commanders including CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine. Whether diplomatic contacts will produce an agreement before any military decision is made remained unclear, the Post reported.
Sources
1. Trump on remaining Iranian nuclear sites: 'We can do that in 10 minutes', jns.org
2. Trump says US ready to hit Iran's nuclear program 'in ten minutes' after speaking with Netanyahu, jpost.com