President Donald Trump sharply criticized former President Barack Obama on Monday while defending his administration\u2019s hardline approach toward Iran, arguing that previous administrations empowered Tehran through failed diplomacy and massive cash payments that ultimately strengthened the regime.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t forget the one who funded Iran and caused this war to happen. Obama!\u201d Trump said while discussing the escalating tensions in the Middle East.<\/p>\n
Trump contrasted his own foreign policy posture with those of Obama and former President Joe Biden, claiming Iran only responds to strength rather than negotiation.<\/p>\n
The comments came the same day the U.S. military confirmed it carried out defensive strikes in southern Iran after Iranian forces allegedly threatened American personnel and strategic shipping lanes near the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n
According to U.S. Central Command, American forces targeted missile launch sites and Iranian boats that were attempting to place naval mines in the region.<\/p>\n
\u201cU.S. forces conducted self-defense strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces,\u201d CENTCOM spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Officials said the strikes focused on Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps assets, including two vessels reportedly laying mines near the Strait of Hormuz and a surface-to-air missile site in Bandar Abbas that had targeted U.S. warplanes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese were defensive strikes,\u201d one senior U.S. official told reporters, emphasizing that the actions were not intended to end the current ceasefire framework but rather to protect American troops and maritime operations.<\/p>\n
Explosions were reported Monday in Bandar Abbas, Sirik, and Jask, all located near the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, through which a significant percentage of the world\u2019s oil supply passes each day.<\/p>\n
Trump\u2019s remarks also revived debate over one of the Obama administration\u2019s most controversial foreign policy decisions: the 2016 transfer of $1.7 billion in cash and foreign currency to Iran following the implementation of the Iran nuclear agreement.<\/p>\n
The Obama administration acknowledged at the time that the money was delivered in pallets of foreign cash because sanctions had effectively blocked Iran from accessing the international financial system.<\/p>\n
The first installment, totaling $400 million, was transferred to Tehran on Jan. 17, 2016, the same day Iran released four American prisoners. Additional payments totaling $1.3 billion followed in subsequent weeks.<\/p>\n
Obama officials maintained the payment stemmed from a decades-old legal settlement involving Iranian funds frozen after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.<\/p>\n
However, critics argued the timing effectively amounted to ransom payments that incentivized hostage-taking by the Iranian regime.<\/p>\n
Congressional Republicans blasted the move at the time, saying the administration empowered a state sponsor of terrorism while publicly insisting the payments were unrelated to the prisoner release.<\/p>\n
\n\ud83d\udd25 BREAKING: President Trump just dropped absolute TRUTH NUKES on Hussein Obama<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t forget the one who funded Iran and caused this war to happen. OBAMA!\u201d<\/p>\n
OBAMA: \u201cLet\u2019s negotiate\u201d Iran: \u201cI will blow sht up\u201d
\nBIDEN: \u201cLet\u2019s negotiate\u201d Iran: \u201cI will blow sht up\u201d<\/p>\nTRUMP: \u201cI WILL\u2026\u00a0pic.twitter.com\/RXrs4vu9DW<\/a><\/p>\n