The U.S. is assisting Israel in intercepting Iranian missiles launched Friday, a U.S. official confirmed to The Hill.
President Trump has also spoken to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a White House official confirmed. Trump had spent Friday in the Situation Room huddled with several national security advisers.
Israel came under heavy bombardment from Iran less than 24 hours after Israeli forces launched attacks overnight Thursday that targeted Tehran’s nuclear capabilities and killed multiple top military officials.
Dozens of ballistic missiles have been fired on Tel Aviv, Israeli officials said Friday amid Iran’s counterattack.
The Trump administration said late Thursday it was not involved in Israel’s offensive strikes inside Iran. Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the time said Israel had advised the U.S. that its action was “necessary for its self-defense.”
Even after Israel’s strikes, Trump on Friday urged Iran to agree to a deal to limit its nuclear program or face dire consequences. He also acknowledged that some of the negotiators had been killed in the Israeli strikes.
“There has already been great death and destruction, but there is still time to make this slaughter, with the next already planned attacks being even more brutal, come to an end,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Iran must make a deal, before there is nothing left, and save what was once known as the Iranian Empire.”
A day before the strikes, the Trump administration downsized its footprint in Iraq and greenlighted the departures of military dependents across northeast Africa, the Middle East, and portions of South and Central Asia. The move came ahead of talk of a possible strike in the region.
Alex Gangitano contributed.
