U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iran on Monday that the U.S. could carry out further military strikes if the country attempts to reconstitute its nuclear program as he held wide-ranging talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his home in Florida.
Trump had previously insisted that Tehranās nuclear capabilities were ācompletely and fully obliteratedā by U.S. strikes on key nuclear enrichment sites in June. But with Netanyahu by his side, Trump raised the possibility that suspected activity could be taking place outside those sites. Israeli officials, meanwhile, have been quoted in local media expressing concern about Iran rebuilding its supply of long-range missiles capable of striking Israel.
āNow I hear that Iran is trying to build up again,ā Trump told reporters gathered at his Mar-a-Lago estate. āAnd if they are, weāre going to have to knock them down. Weāll knock them down. Weāll knock the hell out of them. But hopefully thatās not happening.ā
Trumpās warning to Iran comes as his administration has committed significant resources to targeting drug trafficking in South America and the president looks to create fresh momentum for the U.S.-brokered Israel-Hamas ceasefire. The Gaza deal is in danger of stalling before reaching its complicated second phase that would involve naming an international governing body and rebuilding the devastated Palestinian territory.
At a news conference with Netanyahu after their meeting, Trump suggested that he could order another U.S. strike.
āIf itās confirmed, they know the consequences, and the consequences will be very powerful, maybe more powerful than the last time,ā Trump said.
Iran has insisted that it isĀ no longer enriching uraniumĀ at any site in the country, trying to signal to the West that it remains open to potential negotiations over its atomic program. The two leaders discussed the possibility of taking new military action against Tehran just months after Juneās 12-day war.
The Iranian mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Trumpās warning.
Gaza ceasefire progress has slowed
Trump, with Netanyahu by his side, said he wants to get to the second phase of the Gaza deal āas quickly as we can.ā
āBut there has to be a disarming of Hamas,ā Trump added.
TheĀ ceasefire between Israel and HamasĀ that Trump championed has mostly held, but progress has slowed recently. Both sidesĀ accuse each other of violations, and divisions have emerged among the U.S., Israel and Arab countries about the path forward.
The truceās first phase began in October, days after the two-year anniversary of the initial Hamas-led attack on Israel that killed about 1,200 people.Ā All but one of the 251 hostagesĀ taken then have been released,Ā alive or dead.
The Israeli leader, who also met separately with Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, has signaled he is in no rush to move forward with the next phase as long as the remains ofĀ Ran GviliĀ are still in Gaza.
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Gviliās parents met with Netanyahu as well as Rubio, U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and the presidentās son-in-law, Jared Kushner, in Florida on Monday.
āTheyāre waiting for their son to come home,ā Trump said of the family ofĀ the young police officerĀ known affectionately as āRani.ā
The path to implementing Trumpās peace plan is certainly complicated.
If successful, the second phase would see the rebuilding of a demilitarized Gaza under international supervision by a group chaired by Trump and known as the Board of Peace. The Palestinians would form a ātechnocratic, apoliticalā committee to run daily affairs in Gaza, under Board of Peace supervision.
It further calls for normalized relations between Israel and the Arab world and a possible pathway to Palestinian independence. Then there are thorny logistical and humanitarian questions, including rebuilding war-ravaged Gaza, disarming Hamas and creating a security apparatus called theĀ International Stabilization Force.
Two main challenges have complicated moving to the second phase, according to an official who was briefed on those meetings. Israeli officials have been taking a lot of time to vet and approve members of the Palestinian technocratic committee from a list given to them by the mediators, and Israel continues its military strikes.
Trumpās plan also calls for the stabilization force, proposed as a multinational body, to maintain security. But it, too, has yet to be formed. Whether details will be forthcoming after Mondayās meeting is unclear.
A Western diplomat said there is a āhuge gulfā between the U.S.-Israeli understanding of the forceās mandate and that of other major countries in the region, as well as European governments.
All spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide details that havenāt been made public.
The U.S. and Israel want the force to have a ācommanding roleā in security duties, including disarming Hamas and other militant groups. But countries being courted to contribute troops fear that mandate will make it an āoccupation force,ā the diplomat said.
Hamas has said it is ready to discuss āfreezing or storingā its arsenal of weapons but insists it has a right to armed resistance as long as Israel occupies Palestinian territory. One U.S. official said a potential plan might be to offer cash incentives in exchange for weapons, echoing a ābuybackā program Witkoff has previously floated.
Trump makes case once again for Netanyahu pardon
The two leaders, who have a long and close relationship, heaped praise on each other. Trump also tweaked the Israeli leader, who at moments during the war has raised Trumpās ire, for being āvery difficult on occasion.ā
Netanyahu said Trump during the lunch was formally told that his countryās education ministry will award him the Israel Prize, breaking the long-held convention of bestowing the honor on an Israeli citizen or resident.
āPresident Trump has broken so many conventions to the surprise of people,ā Netanyahu said. He added, āSo we decided to break a convention too, or create a new one.ā
Trump alsoĀ renewed his callĀ on Israeli President Isaac Herzog to grant Netanyahu, who is in the midst of a corruption trial, a pardon.
Netanyahu is the only sitting prime minister in Israeli history to stand trial, after being charged withĀ fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribesĀ in three separate cases accusing him of exchanging favors with wealthy political supporters.
Trump has previously written to Herzog to urge a pardon and advocated for one during his October speech before the Knesset. He said Monday that Herzog has told him āitās on its wayā without offering further details.
āHeās a wartime prime minister whoās a hero. How do you not give a pardon?ā Trump said.
Herzogās office said in a statement that the Israeli president and Trump have not spoken since the pardon request was submitted, but that Herzog has spoken with a Trump representative about the U.S. presidentās letter advocating for Netanyahuās pardon.
āDuring that conversation, an explanation was provided regarding the stage of the process in which the request currently stands, and that any decision on the matter will be made in accordance with the established procedures,ā the Israeli presidentās office said.
Mednick reported from Jerusalem and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writers Darlene Superville in Washington, Farnoush Amiri at the United Nations, and Lee Keath and Fatma Khaled in Cairo contributed to this report.
