By using this website you agree that we use cookies. You can find out more in the privacy policy.

Deutsche Tageszeitung - Trump says 'everything's been knocked out' in Iran

Trump says 'everything's been knocked out' in Iran

POLITICS 03.03.2026
Trump says 'everything's been knocked out' in Iran
Trump says 'everything's been knocked out' in Iran / Photo: © AFP

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday boasted of wide damage on Iran inflicted by the US-Israel attack, while denying that Israel had forced his hand into launching the war.

Change text size:

"Just about everything's been knocked out," Trump said as he met German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, answering his first questions from reporters since the strikes began on Saturday.

Trump's administration has given conflicting reasons for going to war, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying Monday that the United States did so only after learning that ally Israel was going to strike.

But Trump walked that back, saying that he acted to prevent Tehran launching an assault first.

"Based on the way the negotiation was going, I think they (Iran) were going to attack first. And I didn't want that to happen," Trump said in the Oval Office.

"So, if anything, I might have forced Israel's hand."

The US president has also faced criticism for the lack of an apparent day-after plan for Iran, and he admitted that he was not sure how the situation would play out after the conflict.

"I guess the worst case would be, we do this, and then somebody takes over who's as bad as the previous person, right?" Trump said, referring to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran's supreme leader was killed in air strikes on the first day of the conflict.

"I guess the worst case would be, we do this, and then somebody takes over who's as bad as the previous person, right?" said Trump.

"That could happen. We don't want that to happen."

Trump also told protesters in Iran to hold off any major moves until the situation had stabilized. He has also used the recent deadly crackdown on protests in Iran as a justification for the war.

"We've said, don't do it yet. If you're going to go out and protest, don't do it yet," Trump added.

He said that two waves of US-Israeli attacks on Iran had killed figures he had eyed as potential new leaders, adding that there had been a "substantial" new attack on a meeting to choose the new leadership.

"Most of the people we had in mind are dead," he said. "Now we have another group. They may be dead also, based on reports."

(I.Beryonev--DTZ)

Featured

'Everybody's profiting': Trump defends $1bn crypto earnings

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday defended earning $1.2 billion from his family's cryptocurrency activities last year, saying "everybody's profiting" from his time in power.

Noosha Aubel: 10 km/h for residents – Potsdam’s approach to potholes: indifference or incompetence?

Rudolf-Breitscheid-Straße in Potsdam Babelsberg, in the German federal state of Brandenburg, does not look like a road in a state capital. It looks like a record of neglect: torn-up tarmac, exposed paving stones, deep potholes, dangerous kerbs, patchwork repairs instead of proper refurbishment. Anyone travelling here by car, bicycle, moped or motorbike is not driving along a road – they are driving through a publicly funded failure. Whether this publicly funded failure stems from a lack of interest or incompetence at Potsdam Town Hall – where Noosha Aubel (50), as mayor of an independent city in salary grade B7, receives a monthly basic salary of 11,921.34 euros paid for by the taxpayers, according to the pay scale – is a matter for scrutiny.The city, and above all those in charge at Potsdam Town Hall, were aware of the situation, particularly Mayor Noosha Aubel. As early as 2024, Potsdam itself stated that the condition of the roads had deteriorated to such an extent that a 10 km/h speed limit was ‘unavoidable’; the cost of resurfacing the road was estimated at 3.3 million euros. According to the city, the funds for this were not available. However, the blame for this financial crisis – at the citizens’ expense – lies with those in charge at Potsdam City Hall, who are funded by the citizens on a daily basis.

Stocks mixed with eyes on US Fed

Stock markets traded mixed on Wednesday amid a bout of profit-taking, with the new head of the Federal Reserve, Kevin Warsh, indicating taming inflation is his top priority.

Trump upbeat as US, Iran hold indirect talks in Qatar

US President Donald Trump hailed the progress on Wednesday of indirect talks between the United States and Iran in Qatar, as the sides aimed to push forward negotiations and quell tensions following exchanges of fire.

Change text size: