Donald Trump speaking with Fox News
Former U.S. president and the leading Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said on Sunday that Israel had been involved in planning the 2020 assassination of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani but opted out of the operation two days beforehand.
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"When we took out Soleimani, Israel was supposed to do it with us, two days before the takeout, they said 'we can't do it'," Trump told Fox News in an interview, lobbing criticism at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "Israel was a part of it, and Bibi was a big part of it, and we had everything planned."
When asked about the killing of U.S. servicemembers by Iranian-backed groups in Jordan last week, the real estate mogul said that it would not have happened had he been in office because, according to him, Tehran respected him during his presidency.
Trump mentioned that after the U.S. strongly retaliated against Iran for a specific action, Iran felt compelled to respond. They informed him of their intent to target a U.S. asset but were unsuccessful. The former president added that Iran aimed to demonstrate strength with their reaction, yet they implored him not to retaliate further.
A political source confirmed to Ynet that Israel was involved in planning the Quds Force commander’s assassination but pulled out of the operation due to Netanyahu’s concerns about Iran retaliating against senior Israeli officials.
"For a long time, Mossad and the Military Intelligence Directorate had been preparing the operation to eliminate Soleimani. However, at the moment of truth, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu got cold feet, fearing Iran's retaliation against high-ranking Israelis,” the source said. ”Subsequently, Trump, advised by his defense secretary, decided to proceed, and so it was.”
First published: 21:11, 02.04.24