US strikes on Iran triggered by Israel's plan to launch attack, Rubio says

"It was abundantly clear that if Iran came under attack by anyone—the United States or Israel or anyone—they were going to respond, and respond against the United States. 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 pre-emptively go after them before they launched those attacks, we would suffer higher casualties."

"Since the conflict began, the United States and Israel have carried out waves of airstrikes across Iran, and Tehran has retaliated with drone and missile attacks against US-aligned countries across the Middle East. The air campaign has killed several of Iran's top military and political leaders, including the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei."

The Trump administration justified its surprise air campaign against Iran by citing intelligence that Israel would attack Iran and Iran would respond by targeting US troops. Secretary of State Marco Rubio explained that preemptive strikes were necessary to prevent higher American casualties. The conflict has involved waves of airstrikes by the US and Israel across Iran, resulting in the deaths of several Iranian military and political leaders, including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The US military reported six service member deaths, while Iranian sources reported over 500 casualties. Congressional reactions divided along party lines, with Republicans supporting the administration's decision and Democrats questioning the necessity and clarity of the conflict's objectives.

Read at www.theguardian.com