Answering a question, Trump says ‘Israel would never’ use nuclear weapon against Iran

Trump is asked by a reporter during an event at the White House about a call from his unofficial AI adviser David Sacks for the US to quickly declare victory against Iran or risk getting entangled in a dragged-out conflict where Israel could well use a nuclear weapon.

Trump says he had not heard about those comments from Sacks, but insists that “Israel wouldn’t do that. Israel would never do that.”

Trump also says the US does not know whether Iran’s newly selected supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is alive, after declaring last week that he likely is.

“We don’t know if he’s dead or not,” Trump says.

Last week, Trump said he thinks that Khamenei is alive but “probably damaged in some form.”

Trump says “some people” are “saying that he lost his leg… Other people are saying he’s dead. Nobody’s saying he’s 100% healthy.”

He accuses Iran of engaging in disinformation regarding the war.

“They’re using disinformation, plus AI, and that’s a terrible situation,” he says, citing fake footage of US and Israeli targets burning.

Trump says he has discussed the IDF offensive against Hezbollah with Israel’s leaders, but avoids answering a question as to whether Washington supports a large-scale operation.

“Hezbollah is a big problem, and they’re rapidly being eliminated,” he says.