Iran Attacked Them, Now Arab Nations Want To Join The Fight: Trump

Arab nations that were initially reluctant to join the American-backed military campaign against Iran are now pushing to take an active role, and it was Iran's "surprising" actions.

That is according to United States President Donald Trump, who told CNN on Monday that several Arab countries came under fire from Tehran and changed their position.

"We were surprised. We told them, 'We've got this,' and now they want to fight. And they're aggressively fighting. They were going to be very little involved, and now they insist on being involved," Trump told CNN.

Joint American and Israeli strikes on Iran over the weekend triggered a wide-ranging response from Tehran. Iran launched missiles and armed drones towards Tel Aviv and towards US military installations across the Middle East.

Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed on the day 1 of those strikes.

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In the days that followed, Iran directed attacks at Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Trump described Iran's decision to strike those countries as "probably the biggest surprise" of the campaign so far.

"They (Iran) shot into a hotel, they shot into an apartment house. It just made them angry. They (Arab nations) love us, but they were watching. There was no reason for them to be involved," he said.

"We're knocking the crap out of them, but the big wave is yet to come," he said. "I think it's going very well. It's very powerful. We've got the greatest military in the world, and we're using it."

Trump Says The Biggest US Strike Is Still To Come

Speaking at the White House in his first public comments since the campaign against Iran began, said that the United States is already "substantially ahead" of its original timeline, saying early projections had put the campaign at four to five weeks. He said the US has the "capability to go far longer" if needed.

Seven Nations Issue Joint Statement Condemning Iran

The United States joined six Arab countries on Monday in releasing a strongly worded joint statement that condemned Iran's missile and drone campaign across the region as reckless and unjustified.

The statement, signed by the US, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, described Iran's strikes as "indiscriminate" attacks on sovereign nations that put civilian lives at risk.

"These unjustified strikes targeted sovereign territory, endangered civilian populations, and damaged civilian infrastructure," the statement read.

The seven nations described Iran's conduct as "a dangerous escalation that violates the sovereignty of multiple states and threatens regional stability," adding that targeting civilians and countries not engaged in hostilities was "reckless and destabilising behaviour."

The statement added, "We stand united in defence of our citizens, sovereignty, and territory."