US President Donald Trump has made a controversial statement while millions of Iranians gathered for the funeral of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, drawing global attention amid rising regional tensions.
Speaking to US media, Trump suggested that Iran’s top leadership was gathered at one location and said the United States could target them with a single strike but would not do so to keep diplomatic talks possible.
“They are all there. One shot and we can take them all out, but we are not going to do that because then we would have nobody to negotiate with. They are begging to make a deal,” Trump said.
During his address marking America’s 250th Independence Day at Mount Rushmore, Trump also said, “We knocked the hell out of Iran. They’re dying to settle. We gave them a week off for a funeral because we’re nice people.”
According to Sources quoted by reports, Iranian officials estimate that between 15 and 20 million people are expected to attend the multi-day funeral. Ceremonies will continue in Tehran before further rites in Qom, Baghdad, Karbala and Najaf, with the burial scheduled in Mashhad on July 9.
