During a Wednesday morning press conference, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth became irritated with a reporter who questioned him about the two-week peace deal between the US and Iran, after Iran reportedly fired ballistic missiles at targets in the Middle East.
Following the Pakistan-brokered peace deal, Israel attacked Lebanon, following which, Iran highlighted the fragility and futility of the deal. It remains unclear whether Iranian authorities violated the deal intentionally or whether the reported strikes were the result of confusion.
Pete Hegseth, on Wednesday, mentioned that while he was in favor of the peace deal now in place, the US military could again start striking Iran at a moment’s notice.
When a reporter pressed Hegseth about Iran’s alleged attacks, he appeared irritated and asked the journalist, “Excuse me, why are you so rude? Just wait. I’m calling on people.” Then, it was noticed that he further added, “So nasty” under his breath, according to the Irishstar.
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This is not the first time that members of the Trump administration have lashed out at journalists for doing their job. The president and Cabinet members have accused reporters of covering the Iran conflict negatively.
Before the peace deal came into being, Trump had made a genocidal threat to Iran over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The President said that the whole Iranian civilization would be wiped out if the Strait were not opened. However, hours before the alleged attack was supposed to happen, the peace deal came through.
Trump had previously claimed that the US had attacked Iran because it posed a significant threat of an attack. However, as both the Pentagon and the US Intelligence confirmed, there was no imminent threat from the country that would require a regime-changing war to be waged on it.
During the initial days of the war, the president gave differing accounts of the plan, offering varying descriptions of developments and future actions involving Iran.
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He also described the US attack as a “short excursion,” even though the conflict has entered its second month.
Iran’s reported blocking of the Strait has proven to be quite critical for the US, despite the President previously claiming that the US did not need the Strait that much.
However, the rising prices of fuel and gas ultimately led to Trump threatening to wipe out Iran and eventually reaching the peace deal.
From Trump’s attack on Iran to his various comments made throughout the course of the same carry the risk of being tagged as war crimes. However, that has not made the President change his course of action.
Much like his cabinet members, Trump himself has repeatedly threatened and yelled at journalists whenever they have pressed him for answers to uncomfortable questions.
