Republican White House candidate Donald Trump said on Friday that he believes Israel should hot Iran’s nuclear facility first in response to the Islamic Republic’s recent missile barrage.
Speaking at a campaign in North Carolina, the former US President referred to a question posed to President Joe Biden this week about the possibility of Israel targeting Iran’s nuclear programme.
“They asked him, what do you think about Iran, would you hit Iran? And he goes, ‘As long as they don’t hit the nuclear stuff.’ That’s the thing you want to hit, right?” Trump said at a town hall-style event, reported AFP.
On Wednesday, Biden was asked whether he would support Israeli strikes against Iranian nuclear sites and the US President said “The answer is no.”
“I think he’s got that one wrong,” said the Republican candidate.”Isn’t that what you’re supposed to hit? I mean, it’s the biggest risk we have, nuclear weapons,” he said.
“When they asked him that question, the answer should have been, hit the nuclear first, and worry about the rest later,” he said.
“If they’re going to do it, they will do it. But we’ll find out whatever their plans are,” Trump added.
The US President has expressed his opposition to strikes against Iran’s nuclear facilities, in response to the firing of nearly 200 Iranian missiles towards Israel.
He said that it will be discussed with Israelis as to what they are going to do, adding that all the G7 members agree Israel has “a right to respond, but they should respond in proportion.”
On Friday, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei made a rare public address after the prayers in Tehran saying Iran’s attack against Israel was “legal”.
He said that Iran gave “minimum punishment” to Israel against their “astonishing crimes”.
Khamenei called upon the Muslim nations to “fasten the seatbelt” of resistance and pressed on the “unity” of Muslims around the world based on the principles of the Quran.
“The policies adopted by our enemy is to sow the seeds of division and sedition, to drive a wedge among all the Muslims. They are the same enemies to the Palestinians, Lebanese, Egyptians, and the Iraqis. They are the enemy of the Yemeni and Syrian people,” Khamenei said.