NEW YORK, October 5. /TASS/. US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump told a campaign event in North Carolina that, in his opinion, Israel should strike nuclear facilities in Iran.
The statement came in response to incumbent US President Joe Biden, who does not support strikes against nuclear facilities in Iran.
"I think he [Biden] has got that one wrong. Isn't that what you're supposed to hit? I mean, it's the biggest risk we have, nuclear weapons," Trump said. "When they asked him that question, the answer should have been, hit the nuclear first, and worry about the rest later."
In his opinion, the United States should be prepared for this scenario.
The New Yorker magazine wrote earlier that without US assistance, Israel would not be able to destroy Iran's nuclear infrastructure, "especially the underground nuclear-enrichment site at Fordow, south of Tehran." "The only air force capable of destroying that reactor is that of the United States," the magazine notes, adding that US President Joe Biden "has never ruled out using military force" against Iranian nuclear sites.
Late on October 1, Iran launched a massive ballistic and hypersonic missile attack against Israel in response to the killing of senior officials from the Palestinian movement Hamas, the Lebanon-based Shia movement Hezbollah and the IRGC. Tehran said that 90% of the missiles hit their designated targets. Israel, in turn, said that Iran had fired some 180 missiles into the country, most of which were intercepted. The Israeli General Staff vowed to choose the right moment to surprise Iran with a counterattack, while Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that Israel would see even larger-scale strikes.