The United States attacked Iran only after learning that ally Israel was going to strike and fearing Tehran would retaliate against U.S. forces, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday (March 2, 2026).
"We knew that there was going to be an Israeli action. We knew that that would precipitate an attack against American forces, and we knew that if we didn't preemptively go after them before they launched those attacks, we would suffer higher casualties," Mr. Rubio told reporters.
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Mr. Rubio, who was preparing to brief key U.S. lawmakers, said that Iran had told field commanders to respond automatically against U.S. forces if there was an attack.
"If we stood and waited for that attack to come first before we hit them, we would suffer much higher casualties. And so the president made the very wise decision" to hit alongside Israel, Mr. Rubio said.
