Trump orders a ‘massive’ military fleet toward Iran with ominous warning about what could come next: ‘We’re watching’
Donald Trump has warned Iran that the US is ‘watching’ and a fleet is heading to the region, a week after violent protests that many believe will force Trump to strike Tehran.
Speaking on Air Force One on his way home from the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday, Trump repeated the statement, “We are watching Iran.”
This includes military ships that will go to the region if needed.
‘We have a large fleet heading that way. We’ll see what happens. “We have a large force heading towards Iran,” Trump said.
‘I’d rather not see anything happen, but we’re watching them very closely.’
Recent military movements have seen US F-15 Strike Eagles arrive in Jordan as part of a wider strategic build-up that also includes the westward transit of the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group.
This naval force, currently advancing from the South China Sea to the Persian Gulf, is equipped with destroyers, F-35 stealth fighters and electronic jamming aircraft.
He warned that US forces, including a ‘massive navy’, might have to move to attack Tehran, but added ‘maybe we won’t have to use them, we’ll see’.
Donald Trump has warned Iran that the US is “watching” and a fleet is on its way to the region, a week after violent protests that many believe will force Trump to strike Tehran
The Iranian government has remained on Trump’s mind ever since; When state television threatened to assassinate him, the president responded. Image: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei
Trump also continued his claims that he was personally responsible for canceling the executions of more than 800 protesters by the Iranian government.
‘I stopped 837 executions on Thursday, all of them would have died, everyone would have been hanged,’ he said.
He described Iran’s tactics as ‘a thousand years old’. ‘This is an ancient culture.’
‘I said, ‘If you hang these people, you will be hit harder than you have ever been hit before. “Trump will make what we did to the Iran nuclear deal look like peanuts,” he added.
The claim comes amid rising tensions in the Gulf, where the United States continues to move military assets including carrier strike groups and warplanes.
Trump was coy when CNBC pressed him early Thursday on whether the movement of those assets was “a prelude to further steps.”
“We hope there will be no further protests, but you know they are shooting people indiscriminately in the streets,” the president said, referring to civil unrest and protests.
Trump also used the interview to boast about the capabilities of the US military. He drew attention to the attack on the Fordow nuclear facility, which he claimed had a devastating effect on B-2 bombers.
Trump also maintained that he was personally responsible for canceling the execution of more than 800 protesters by the Iranian government.
Thousands of people shouted anti-US and anti-Israeli banners and slogans in front of Tehran University, where a funeral ceremony was held for 100 security personnel who lost their lives in the protests.
“We hit the B-2 bombers very hard,” said Trump, noting that the USA recently ordered 25 additional planes of this model.
‘These were incredible, they were completely undetectable… in the dark of the night, late in the evening, when there was no moon, every single one of these bombs, and giants, every single one of these bombs hit their target and destroyed the place.’
According to initial available intelligence assessments, the United States severely damaged the Iranian program by delaying it for months rather than completely destroying it.
Kernen stated that Democrats ‘sadden’ the president for his actions in Iran, and suggested that even if he ‘walked on water’, critics would say he ‘can’t swim’.
‘Look, these are sick people. ‘They really are,’ Trump replied. ‘They, we call it Trump instability syndrome.’
Trump ended the debate by arguing that the world should “stay tuned” on developments in Iran.
He has made it clear that his red line will be nuclear activity in Iran, saying that if the regime continues to test this technology ‘this will happen again’.
Following Trump’s calls for the Iranian Supreme Leader to resign, Iranian General Abolfazl Shekarchi warned that any hostile action against Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would face serious consequences.
“Trump knows that if any hand of attack is extended to our leader, we will not only cut off that hand but also set their world on fire,” Shekarchi said.
