German chancellor Friedrich Merz and US president Donald Trump during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington. Photograph: Samuel Corum/Sipa/BloombergUS president Donald Trump has said the US-Israel attack on Iran was pre-emptive and has backed surviving officials inside the Tehran regime to assume leadership in the country. In a joint press appearance with German chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump said the “lunatics” in Tehran “were going to attack first”. Asked about the future leadership of Iran, Trump said the “leader of the pack is gone”, a nod to the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. This meant meant long detours for Iran-bound US aircraft, which could not use Diego Garcia, one of the islands, as a base.

Source: The Irish Times March 04, 2026 06:24 UTC