On April 22 at the White House, Time Magazine conducted an interview on Trump’s 100 days in office.
One line of questioning to the President pertained to the next steps with Iran:
Interviewer: You’ve begun direct talks with Iran. Are you open to meeting with Iran’s President or supreme leader?
Trump: Sure
Interviewer: You reportedly stopped Israel from attacking Iran’s nuclear sites.
Trump: That’s not right.
Interviewer: It’s not right?
Trump: That’s not right. I didn’t stop them, but I didn’t make it comfortable for them, because I think we can make a deal without the attack. I hope we can. It’s possible we’ll have to attack because Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. But I didn’t make it comfortable for them, but I didn’t say no. Ultimately, I was going to leave that choice to them, but I said I would much prefer a deal than bombs being dropped.
Interviewer: Are you worried Netanyahu will drag you into a war?
Trump: No. By the way, he may go into a war, but we’re not getting dragged in.
Interviewer: The US will stay out of it if Israel goes into it?
Trump: No, I didn’t say that. You asked if he’d drag me in, like I’d go in unwillingly. No, I may go in very willingly. If we can’t get a deal, if we don’t make a deal, I’ll be leading the pack.
Previously, President Trump put Iran on notice while the United States was bolstering its military presence in the region. It appeared that a strike could be imminent on Iran, with the United States and Israel collaborating to destroy Iran’s nuclear program. At least for now, those actions seem to be on hold as President Trump pursues a diplomatic agreement. Nevertheless, as he stated in the interview with Time Magazine, he would be prepared to lead the pack should an agreement not be reached.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has conditions for any kind of agreement with Iran, as he told the Jewish News Syndicate at a policy summit in Jerusalem on April 27.
“Israel will only agree to a nuclear deal with Iran that eliminates Tehran’s capacity to enrich uranium,” JNS cited the Prime Minister as saying. “The only way to prevent the Islamic Republic from building a nuclear weapon is to dismantle ‘all the infrastructure of Iran’s nuclear program… That is the deal.’”
Benjamin Netanyahu went on to say, “[Israel] cannot live with anything short of that—anything short of that could bring you the opposite result, because Iran will say, all right, I won’t enrich, wait, run out the clock, wait for another president, do it again.”
Calling that outcome unacceptable, Netanyahu added, “A bad deal is worse than no deal.”
I agree with the Prime Minister.
This led President Trump on Sunday to underscore that “total dismantlement” of Iran’s nuclear program is “all [he] would accept.”
When President Trump was previously asked about the direct negotiations with Iran, he stated: “The Iran situation—I think we’re doing very well. I think a deal is going to be made here. It’s going to happen soon—pretty seen it’s going to happen—something without having to start dropping bombs all over the place.”
While we all desire a peaceful resolution, do you genuinely believe that the Iranian regime, with its ambitions to annihilate Israel, will suddenly cease its efforts? Or that its satanic hatred towards the Jewish state will simply vanish? A simple reading of Ezekiel 38 and 39 tells a different story. The answer is unequivocally “No.”
Khomeini, the supreme leader of Iran, has repeatedly called for the destruction and end of Israel. Here are a few of his statements:
- In December 2000, he called Israel a “cancerous tumor” that must be removed.
- In 2014, he tweeted that the “barbaric, wolf-like, and infanticidal regime of Israel, which spares no crime, has no cure but to be annihilated.”
- In September 2015, Khomeini stated, “You will not see 25 years; god willing, there will be nothing of the Zionist regime by the next 25 years.”
- In April 2020, he described Zionism as “a virus that must be eliminated as soon as possible.”
- In May 2020, during Al Quds Day, he declared that Israel is a “cancerous tumor” that “will undoubtedly be uprooted and destroyed.”
- In January 2024, he tweeted in Hebrew, Israel’s “crimes will not be forgotten, even after the Zionist regime is destroyed by the grace of god.”
- On April 10, 2024, following an Israeli strike on Iran’s consulate in Damascus, Khomeini stated, “The evil regime made a mistake, and it must be punished, and it shall be.”
- On October 4, 2024, he proclaimed, “Every strike launched by any group against Israel is a service to the region and to all humanity.”
- On October 27, 2024, he urged that Israel must “realize Iran’s power,” describing Israel as a “criminal gang” committing “the most horrific war crimes.”
- On November 2, 2024, he warned of a “crushing response” against Israel and the United States.
- On December 17, 2024, he declared that the Zionist regime is “doomed to eradication,” adding that “Israel will be uprooted.”
Do you think that ‘making a deal’ will change this satanic hatred for Israel? No, it will not. Khomeini adheres to an apocalyptic perspective in which the destruction of Israel aligns with his end-times scenario, as outlined in the Hadith. In Book 41, Hadith 6985 states, “The last hour would not come unless the Muslims will fight against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them until the Jews would hide themselves behind a stone or a tree, and a stone or a tree would say: ‘Muslim, or the servant of Allah, there is a Jew behind me. Come and kill him.’”
What does the God of this universe—the God of Israel—declare in His Word regarding those who would oppose the Jewish State?
The Iranian regime, along with any others who wish to turn against Israel, should heed the words of the prophet Isaiah in chapter 41, verses 10-11, where God speaks to Israel: “Fear not, for I am with you; Be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand: ‘Behold, all those who were incensed against you shall be ashamed and disgraced; They shall be as nothing, and those who strive with you shall perish’”.
They should also consider Amos 9:14-15, “I will bring back the captives of My people Israel; They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them; They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them; They shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them. I will plant them in their land, and no longer shall they be pulled up from the land I have given them, says the Lord your God.”
God will keep His promises to Israel, and those who hate Israel can be assured of this.
