On Wednesday, March 4th, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt provided more information on the timing of the joint military operations between the United States and Israel against Iran. She mentioned that the intelligence on the whereabouts of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, was a crucial factor in determining the timing of the attack. Khamenei was killed on the first day of the US-Israel joint operation.
Leavitt emphasized that the Iranian regime poses a threat to the security of the United States.
“The President is faced with a choice: whether the United States should utilize our military force and capabilities preemptively to eliminate the threat that has been endangering our country and people for the past 47 years, or as the Commander-in-Chief, stand idly by and allow the rogue regime of Iran to attack Americans in the Middle East?” she stated.
From Trump’s perspective, Leavitt pointed out that doing nothing was “unacceptable.” She implied that this idea led the President to decide to strike Iran. The intelligence about Khamenei and other Iranian leaders meeting on February 28th was one of the important factors in determining the timing of the attack.
“This obviously had an impact on the timeline of the operation, but it was not the sole basis of the President’s decision,” she added.
According to the US news website Axios, Trump received a call from Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on February 23rd. Netanyahu informed Trump that Israeli intelligence indicated that Iran’s Supreme Leader, Khamenei, would be meeting with other senior Iranian officials on February 28th. This indicated that launching an attack on that day was the best opportunity to eliminate top Iranian leaders.
The US and Israel launched a joint strike on February 28th, killing 49 Iranian leaders including Khamenei.
Leavitt stated that President Trump’s strike against Iran was the most powerful evidence to date, proving that he “does not bluff.”
“Terrorists gambled that President Trump would be like many of his predecessors, only talking big without enforcing the clear red lines he set. But the fact is, it was a disastrous misjudgment,” she said. “When President Trump makes a threat… he is not bluffing.”