Donald TrumpĀ on Saturday drew what may come to be seen as the most significant red line of his presidency in a three-part tweet, vowing specific military action against Iran if it “strikes any Americans, or American assets.”
“We have … targeted 52 Iranian sites (representing the 52 American hostages taken by Iran many years ago), some at a very high level & important to Iran & the Iranian culture” and “if Iran strikes any Americans, or American assets… Iran itself, WILL BE HIT VERY FAST AND VERY HARD,” Trump wrote in a series of tweets.
Donald J. Trump
ā@realDonaldTrump
Iran is talking very boldly about targeting certain USA assets as revenge for our ridding the world of their terrorist leader who had just killed an American, & badly wounded many others, not to mention all of the people he had killed over his lifetime, including recently hundreds of Iranian protesters. He was already attacking our Embassy, and preparing for additional hits in other locations. Iran has been nothing but problems for many years. Let this serve as a WARNING that if Iran strikes any Americans, or American assets, we have TARGETED 52 IRANIAN SITES (REPRESENTING THE 52 AMERICAN HOSTAGES TAKEN BY IRAN MANY YEARS AGO), SOME AT A VERY HIGH LEVEL & IMPORTANT TO IRAN & THE IRANIAN CULTURE, AND THOSE TARGETS, AND IRAN ITSELF, WILL BE HIT VERY FAST AND VERY HARD. THE USA WANTS NO MORE THREATS!
The string of tweets come after theĀ White House formally notified Congress on SaturdayĀ of the US operation thatĀ killed Iranian military commander Qasem Soleimani on Thursday.
The administration has said it wants to de-escalate the crisis but Trump’s threat to target Iranian cultural sites is likely to antagonize the Iranian population whether they support the government or not. It’s also highly unusual for the US to target cultural rather than military sites, with some critics suggesting such action may violate international law.
“For what it’s worth, I find it hard to believe the Pentagon would provide Trump targeting options that include Iranian cultural sites,” tweeted Colin Kahl, former deputy assistant to President Barack Obama and national security adviser to Vice President Joe Biden. “Trump may not care about the laws of war, but DoD planners and lawyers do…and targeting cultural sites is war crime.”
Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf issued a new National Terrorism Advisory System bulletin in the wake of the drone strike that details the attack and potential Iranian threat, including previous plots against US infrastructure and cyber targets.
“Iran maintains a robust cyber program and can execute cyber attacks against the United States,” reads the bulletin, which expires January 18.
The President has previously issued vague threats against adversaries like Iran and North Korea, but his string of tweets on Saturday was a marked shift because of its detailed nature and because it followed one of the most significant military actions of his presidency.
“Iran will be held fully responsible for lives lost, or damage incurred, at any of our facilities,” Trump tweeted from Florida. “They will pay a very BIG PRICE! This is not a Warning, it is a Threat.”
And later Tuesday, while speaking with reporters as he entered a New Year’s Eve gala at Mar-a-Lago, the President said he doesn’t want war but that if it comes to conflict, Iran wouldn’t last long.
“I don’t think that would be a good idea for Iran,” Trump said, adding later that a potential conflict “would go very quickly.”
