Trump Considers 'Preemptive Strike' Against Iran

Published 14 December 2024 at 15.34

Foreign. US President-elect Donald Trump is considering military action against Iran to stop the country's alleged nuclear weapons program, writes the Wall Street Journal.

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Donald Trump's transition team is discussing the possibility of conducting pre-emptive airstrikes to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, according to sources familiar with the matter.

This would represent a marked departure from past US policy that has relied on diplomacy and sanctions to deal with Iran's alleged nuclear ambitions.

Military action targeting Iran's nuclear facilities is now seen as a more serious option by some members of Trump's transition team.

Discussions are being driven by a desire to expand Israel's influence in the region following Iran's weakened regional position following the fall of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, the US military presence in the region, as well as Israel's successes against the regime's proxy groups that Hezbollah and Hamas, according to the Wall Street Journal.

New alleged information about Iran's nuclear weapons work has intensified these internal transition team talks, according to the WSJ.

According to officials, however, the discussions are at an early stage, and no decisions have yet been made.

It has previously been considered impossible to effectively intervene against the suspected nuclear weapons facilities, which are believed to be underground, beyond the reach of US bunker busters weapons and even nuclear weapons.