WASHINGTON — President Trump said Wednesday he has dispatched a “massive armada” toward Iran as the theocratic regime continues its bloody crackdown on its own people — with Trump warning that Middle Eastern leaders could face the same fate as Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro.
The president demanded that Tehran agree to negotiate a “fair and equitable deal” regarding its nuclear program and reminded the regime that he wasn’t afraid to use force against it last year.
“A massive Armada is heading to Iran,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “It is moving quickly, with great power, enthusiasm, and purpose. It is a larger fleet, headed by the great Aircraft Carrier Abraham Lincoln, than that sent to Venezuela.”
“Like with Venezuela, it is, ready, willing, and able to rapidly fulfill its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary,” he added. “Hopefully Iran will quickly ‘Come to the Table’ and negotiate a fair and equitable deal – NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS – one that is good for all parties.”“Time is running out, it is truly of the essence!”
Iran’s government shrugged off Trump’s threat, with Tehran’s mission to the United Nations sniping that the “last time the US blundered into wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, it squandered over $7 trillion and lost more than 7,000 American lives.”
“Iran stands ready for dialogue based on mutual respect and interests—BUT IF PUSHED, IT WILL DEFEND ITSELF AND RESPOND LIKE NEVER BEFORE!” the mission added in a post on X.
Last week, Trump claimed that he intended to send ships near Iran, but stressed that he hoped the US didn’t have to use them.
At least 6,126 protester deaths at the hands of the regime have been confirmed, with another 17,091 fatalities still being verified, according to Human Rights Activists News Agency, which relies on a network of sources inside Iran.
Another 41,880 people have been arrested by authorities, according to the same outlet.
Meanwhile, two senior health officials in Iran estimated that more than 30,000 people were killed on Jan. 8 and 9 alone, according to Time magazine.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has also acknowledged that thousands were slaughtered by the regime.
While protest activity has simmered down from earlier this month following the issuance of shoot-to-kill orders to the notorious Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran has maintained internet disruptions and other repressive measures to undercut demonstrators.
The anti-regime protests that swept nearly every major city in Iran beginning Dec. 28 had been driven by frustrations with the country’s currency depreciation, inflation, and other domestic woes.
On Jan. 2, Trump had put Iran on notice, declaring that if the regime “violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue.”
The following day, US special forces captured Maduro and flew him to New York to face federal drug-trafficking and weapons charges, signaling the president’s willingness to use kinetic options.
Ultimately, Trump refrained from striking Iran, claiming that he had assurances from the regime that it wouldn’t hang hundreds of protesters.
Opponents of military action in Iran raised concerns that it would give the regime more credibility and enable it to blame the domestic unrest on outside interference.
Recently, the New York Times reported, Trump received intelligence briefings claiming the Shiite regime is in its weakest position since the 1979 revolution due to its economic decay and the reverberations of the protests.