The US is going to be hitting Iran “very hard over the next week”, President Donald Trump said on Friday, shortly after issuing a partial 30-day waiver for purchases of sanctioned Russian oil, hoping to ease prices fuelled by the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Trump has previously said the war is “complete”, and also promised to guarantee the safety of vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the conduit for a fifth of the world’s oil.
The US stands to profit from higher oil prices, he said. “The US is the largest oil producer in the world, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money,” he said on social media on Thursday, adding that the priority is to prevent Iran acquiring nuclear weapons.
In a post on social media, Trump said the US is “totally destroying the terrorist regime of Iran ... We have unparalleled firepower, unlimited ammunition and plenty of time — watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today.
“They’ve been killing innocent people all over the world for 47 years, and now I, as the 47th president of the United States of America, am killing them. What a great honour it is to do so!”
News outlet Axios cited three officials from the G7 powers as saying Trump told G7 leaders in a virtual meeting on Wednesday that Iran is “about to surrender”.
Reuters
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