Trump says he worked 'as a team' with Israel's prime minister to strike Iran
_vb_19.jpeg)
Washington (AP): US President Donald Trump said he worked “as a team” with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to strike Iran, saying the collaboration was “perhaps” like “no team has worked before.”
But Trump also noted that no military in the world except for that of the US could have pulled off the attack.
Trump called Iran “the bully of the Middle East” and warned of additional attacks if it didn't make peace.
“If they do not, future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier,” Trump said at the White House after the bombings of Iran's nuclear facilities were announced earlier.
Trump portrayed the strike as a response to a long-festering problem, even if the objective was to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
“For 40 years Iran has been saying death to America, death to Israel,” Trump said. “They have been killing our people, blowing off their arms, blowing off their legs with roadside bombs.”
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Top US counterterrorism official resigns over Iran war, says Iran posed no imminent threat
Washington (AP): Joe Kent, the director of the National Counterterrorism Centre, announced his resignation on Tuesday, saying he “cannot in good conscience” back the Trump administration's war in Iran.
Kent said on social media Iran “posed no imminent threat to our nation, and it is clear that we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby.”
There was no immediate comment from the White House.
Kent, a former political candidate with connections to right-wing extremists, was confirmed to his post last July on a 52-44 vote.
As head of the National Counterterrorism Centre, he was in charge of an agency tasked with analysing and detecting terrorist threats.
Before entering President Donald Trump's administration, Kent ran two unsuccessful campaigns for Congress in Washington state. He also served in the military, seeing 11 deployments as a Green Beret, followed by work at the CIA.
Democrats strongly opposed Kent's confirmation, pointing to his past ties to far-right figures and conspiracy theories. During his 2022 congressional campaign, Kent paid Graham Jorgensen, a member of the far-right military group the Proud Boys, for consulting work. He also worked closely with Joey Gibson, the founder of the Christian nationalist group Patriot Prayer, and attracted support from a variety of far-right figures.
During his Senate confirmation hearing, Kent also refused to distance himself from a conspiracy theory that federal agents instigated the January 6, 2021, attack at the Capitol, as well as false claims that Trump, a Republican, won the 2020 election over Democrat Joe Biden.
Democrats grilled Kent on his participation in a group chat on Signal that was used by Trump's national security team to discuss sensitive military plans.
Still, Republicans praised Kent's counterterrorism qualifications, pointing to his military and intelligence experience.
Sen. Tom Cotton, the GOP chair of the intelligence committee, said in a floor speech that Kent had "dedicated his career to fighting terrorism and keeping Americans safe.”
