US President Donald Trump has been advised that a large‑scale strike on Iran is unlikely to topple the regime and could ignite a wider regional conflict, US officials told the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.
For now, the report said, the administration is monitoring how Tehran treats protesters before determining the scope of any potential military action.
According to the officials, the US would require additional military firepower in the Middle East both to carry out a major strike and to defend American forces and allies such as Israel in the event of Iranian retaliation. US officials and regional partners told the White House that even a massive bombing campaign was unlikely to bring down the regime and could instead trigger a broader war. Smaller strikes, they said, might lift protesters’ morale but would not halt the crackdown.
Trump has not made a final decision but has instructed that military assets be positioned in case he orders a major attack, the officials said.
“The president and his team have communicated to the Iranian regime that if the killing continues, there will be grave consequences," White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Thursday.
“Only President Trump knows what he’s going to do and a very, very small team of advisers are read into his thinking."
While at one point on Wednesday, tensions seemed to be at their highest and US action in Iran seemed imminent, matters later calmed as Trump claimed that the killing of protesters had ceased.
"We have been notified pretty strongly that the killing in Iran is stopping, and there's no plan for executions or an execution," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
He noted that "I've been told that in good authority. We'll find out about it, I'm sure. If it happens, we'll be very upset."
On Thursday morning, the Iranian regime reopened its airspace, which it had closed several hours prior. The regime also announced that it would not execute Erfan Soltani, a 26-year-old man who was arrested during the recent protests in the country and became a symbol for the demonstrators.