File photo: US President Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said the American campaign against Iran was performing beyond expectations, rating it “about a 15” on a scale of 10 and pledging to press ahead with operations alongside Israel.“We’re doing well on the war front, to put it mildly. Somebody said on a scale of 10, where would you rate it? I said about a 15,” Trump told tech executives at the White House.He claimed Iran’s leadership was being decimated. “We’re in a very strong position now, and their leadership is just rapidly going. Everybody that seems to want to be a leader, they end up dead,” he said, adding that Tehran’s ballistic missile arsenal was being “wiped out rapidly.”

Justification for the war

Trump repeated that the offensive was aimed at stopping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. “When crazy people have nuclear weapons, bad things happen,” he said, calling the previous Obama-era nuclear deal “the worst deal ever made” and “a road to a nuclear weapon”.He vowed to “continue forward” with the joint air campaign that, according to AFP, killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on the opening day of the conflict.The White House said Iran’s clerical leadership was being “absolutely crushed” and was “paying in blood,” but Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to confirm whether Trump was seeking regime change. She said he was “actively considering” a US role in Iran after the current operation concludes, reported AFP.

Expanding conflict and global fallout

A US submarine sank an Iranian warship in international waters, while Israel launched fresh strikes on Tehran and Hezbollah positions in Lebanon. Iran has fired missiles at Israel and Gulf states.The war has killed more than 1,000 people in Iran, over 50 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials cited by news agency AP. The United Nations said 100,000 people fled Tehran in the first two days alone.Oil prices have surged after Iranian attacks on traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, rattling global markets.

Domestic and diplomatic pressures

Trump’s stance has drawn criticism, especially given his earlier campaign pledge of starting “no new wars.” The US Senate is preparing to vote on a war powers resolution seeking congressional approval for further action, though it faces long odds.Leavitt rejected reports that Trump had agreed to arm Kurdish separatists in Iran, calling them “false,” though she confirmed he had spoken to Kurdish leaders regarding US bases in Iraq.Trump also referenced Venezuela, saying US engagement there had “worked out really great” and that oil extraction would benefit both nations.Despite mounting casualties and regional instability, Trump insisted the United States was in “very good shape now” and would continue its military campaign.