Trump Demands Iran's 'Unconditional Surrender'

President Trump ramped up his rhetoric against Iran in significant fashion on Tuesday, with a demand for the nation's "unconditional surrender" as its conflict with Israel unfolds, reports the Wall Street Journal. Trump issued the all-caps demand on Truth Social. He also delivered an unambiguous threat to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei:

• "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding," Trump wrote. "He is an easy target, but is safe there—We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don't want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin."

The comments came after Trump left the G7 summit in Canada a day early on Monday to deal with the Israel-Iran conflict, though he made clear he didn't just want a ceasefire but a "real end" to the war. He didn't elaborate on what that meant. One option is to more directly join Israel's military attack with bunker-busting weaponry; another is to push for new talks aimed at getting Iran to abandon its nuclear program, though Trump expressed frustration with Tehran's unwillingness to do so in earlier negotiations. "They should have done the deal," he told reporters. In the view of the AP, Trump "appears to be gradually building the public case for a more direct American role in the conflict." (More President Trump stories.)