President dismisses concerns that bombing civilian targets would punish ordinary people and could be war crimes
Donald Trump on Monday claimed that Iranian civilians were actively welcoming US strikes on their country’s infrastructure, saying they would be “willing to suffer” the loss of power and basic services in order to achieve freedom from the Islamic Republic.
Speaking to reporters from the White House press room, Trump dismissed concerns that targeting Iran’s power grid and civilian infrastructure would punish ordinary Iranians rather than the regime, saying without evidence that US intelligence had intercepts of civilians near active bombing sites urging American forces to continue.
“Please keep bombing,” Trump quoted intercepted communications as saying, adding: “These are people that are living where the bombs are exploding.”
The claims came as some Democratic lawmakers accused the administration of preparing to commit war crimes by targeting bridges and power plants. Senator Chris Murphy posted on social media that Trump had told reporters he intended to commit “mass war crimes”. Iran’s mission to the United Nations said the threats constituted “clear evidence of intent to commit war crime”.
