Trump justifies US attack on Iran, warns of new big wave of strikes

US ​President ​Donald Trump warned of a possible new "big wave" of strikes against Iran, adding he had not ruled out deploying US boots on the ground. Trump also told a briefing at the White House ​Monday ‌that the US was capable of fighting Iran far longer than projected. Trump said he is not ruling out sending US troops into Iran, while threatening a new, "big wave" of attacks.The US Department of State on Monday called on Americans to immediately depart more than a dozen countries in the Middle East amid US-Israeli strikes against Iran. Secretary of State Marco Rubio urges Americans to register with the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) in order to receive further updates.Americans in the Middle East can also reach the State Department 24/7 at 1-202-501-4444, Rubio adds.
Iran has said that the Strait of Hormuz is "closed" for shipping traffic and warned that any vessel attempting to pass through the strategic waterway would be set on fire, according to Iranian state media. However, US Central Command said the Strait of Hormuz remains open, disputing claims by Iranian officials that the crucial oil shipping route has been shut, Reuters reported, citing Fox News.The Strait of Hormuz is the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which about a fifth of the world’s oil passes. Tankers travelling through the strait, which is bordered in the north by Iran, carry oil and gas from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Qatar, Bahrain, the UAE and Iran. Most of that oil goes to Asia.
Iran has fired missiles at Israel, at US bases around the region and also at targets in regional Arab countries – Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates – something that Trump called "the biggest surprise". Trump again justified his attack by accusing Iran's clerical state of developing nuclear weapons and missile capacity, claims that have been disputed. "This was our last, best chance to strike, what we're doing right now, and eliminate the intolerable threats posed by this sick and sinister regime," Trump said.

Asserting that Iran's nuclear and missile programme is a threat to the entire world, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said Israel's military actions are aimed not only at defending itself but also at safeguarding global security. "This is the third day of Operation Roaring Lion, which the Israeli army and the State of Israel launched, together with our great friends in the US and President Trump, to thwart existential threats to Israel, and great threats to America and the entire world," Netanyahu said while visiting Bet Shemesh, which was hit by an Iranian ballistic missile on Sunday.