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President Donald Trump said Monday on social media that Iran-backed Houthi terrorists have been “decimated” by recent U.S. airstrikes, noting that many of the group’s leaders are “no longer with us.”
Trump shared the update on his Truth Social profile late Monday concerning the attacks against the Middle East terrorist group.
“The Iran-backed Houthi Terrorists have been decimated by the relentless strikes over the past two weeks. Many of their Fighters and Leaders are no longer with us. We hit them every day and night — Harder and harder. Their capabilities that threaten Shipping and the Region are rapidly being destroyed,” the president wrote.
“Our attacks will continue until they are no longer a threat to Freedom of Navigation. The choice for the Houthis is clear: Stop shooting at U.S. ships, and we will stop shooting at you. Otherwise, we have only just begun, and the real pain is yet to come, for both the Houthis and their sponsors in Iran,” he added.
The post comes just one day after Trump warned that Iran could face military strikes and additional economic sanctions if it failed to reach an agreement with the U.S. regarding its nuclear program.
Speaking in a phone interview with NBC News on Sunday, Trump confirmed that discussions were taking place between U.S. and Iranian officials but did not provide further details.
“If they don’t make a deal, there will be bombing,” he stated. “But there’s also a chance that if they don’t agree, I will impose secondary tariffs on them like I did four years ago.”
During his first term from 2017 to 2021, Trump withdrew the U.S. from the 2015 nuclear agreement between Iran and several world powers. That deal had imposed strict limitations on Iran’s nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief. After pulling out, Trump reinstated extensive U.S. sanctions, prompting Iran to expand its uranium enrichment program far beyond the deal’s original restrictions.
So far, Tehran has dismissed Trump’s warnings, resisting pressure to negotiate under the threat of military action.
According to Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi stated that Iran had responded through Oman to a letter from Trump urging the country to agree to a new nuclear deal, USA TODAY reported on Thursday.