by Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Staff
WASHINGTON D.C. (Worthy News) – President Donald Trump said that the coming days will be critical as he considers whether to order U.S. military involvement in the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions.
“Nothing’s finished until it’s finished. You know, war is very complex,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “A lot of bad things can happen. A lot of turns are made. So I don’t know. I wouldn’t say that we want anything yet. I would say that we sure as hell made a lot of progress.”
The president emphasized that his priority is to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, not engaging in a prolonged war. “We’re not looking for long-term [war],” he said. “That’s it, it’s not a question of anything else.” Trump warned that if Iran obtained a nuclear weapon, he believed they would use it against the U.S. or its allies. Iran, for its part, continues to assert that its nuclear program is peaceful.
Tensions flared further after Trump demanded Iran’s “unconditional surrender” earlier this week — a demand Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei swiftly rejected. Trump also said the U.S. knows Khamenei’s location but would not target him “at least for now.”
The president’s remarks followed reports from the Wall Street Journal claiming that Trump had privately approved plans for a U.S. strike on Iran but held back the final order, waiting to see if Tehran would abandon its nuclear efforts. Trump denied the report, writing on Truth Social Thursday, “The Wall Street Journal has No Idea what my thoughts are concerning Iran!”
Throughout the week, Trump has maintained ambiguity about his next move. “I may do it. I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I’m going to do,” he said. However, he noted that Iran had shown interest in negotiating — something he said should have happened before what he described as “death and destruction” unfolded.
Meanwhile, the violence continued to intensify. In the latest attack, Iran launched missiles at Israel, striking a hospital and injuring at least 240 people, according to Israel’s Health Ministry. Seventy of the wounded were inside the hospital, with four reported in serious condition.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz blamed Khamenei directly, saying the Iranian leader “absolutely should not continue to exist” if Israel is to achieve its objectives. Katz did not confirm whether Israel planned a direct operation against Khamenei.
As the region edges closer to broader war, Trump signaled that decisions would come soon. “The next week is going to be very big, maybe less than a week, maybe less,” he said.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
Latest News from Worthy News
Romania and neighboring Hungary are facing an energy crisis linked to a record heat wave and the related low level of the Danube River, with Romania forced to shut down its last operating nuclear reactor while Hungary struggles to keep the only one of its four Paks reactors still operating online.
An elderly Christian leader has been detained in India for allegedly offending the religious sentiments of the Asian nation’s Hindu majority on social media.
Members of Pakistan’s Christian minority were reeling Friday after numerous violent incidents over faith and what they say were false allegations of blasphemy against Islam, the majority religion in the Asian nation.
The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits remained relatively low in early August, offering another sign that widespread layoffs have yet to take hold even as hiring across the U.S. economy remains subdued.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out a second preemptive airstrike in Gaza in two days Thursday, targeting a Hamas terror cell in Khan Yunis that Israeli military officials said was preparing an attack against Israeli forces.
The Trump administration has announced nearly $2 billion in health and humanitarian assistance for faith-based organizations, placing several major Christian ministries at the center of a reshaped U.S. foreign-aid strategy following sweeping cuts to USAID programs.
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar has cast doubt on a controversial Russian-led expansion of Hungary’s only nuclear power plant after record-low levels of the Danube River nearly forced its existing reactors into a complete shutdown.