WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump on Saturday said he wants to bring “freedom” to the people of Iran, hours after announcing joint airstrikes on the country alongside Israel.“All I want is freedom for the people,” Trump said in a brief telephone interview with The Washington Post.“I want a safe nation, and that’s what we’re going to have.”The remarks were his first public comments since he announced the start of offensive operations against Iran in a video posted to social media early Saturday.“A short time ago, the United States military began major combat operations in Iran. Our objective is to defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime,” Trump said in the recorded message.He said Iran’s activities “directly endanger the United States, our troops, our bases overseas, and our allies throughout the world.”Trump vowed to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities and dismantle its missile industry, reiterating that Tehran cannot be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon.“We are going to destroy their missiles and raze their missile industry to the ground. It will be totally, again, obliterated,” he said.He added that the United States would act to prevent what he described as Iran-backed groups from destabilizing the region or attacking American forces.Israel earlier said it had launched a “preemptive” attack against Iran under the name “Lion’s Roar,” declaring a “special and immediate” state of emergency nationwide.The strikes come as negotiations between Washington and Tehran over Iran’s nuclear program had been ongoing under Oman’s mediation. The latest round of talks concluded Thursday in Geneva.Last June, the United States struck three Iranian nuclear sites during the 12-day Israel-Iran war.
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