US - Iran Tensions: How Will Trump Prevent Tehran From Getting Nuclear Weapons?

President Trump ratcheted up the rhetoric on Iran Monday, vowing Tehran “will never have a nuclear weapon,” raising the possibility Iran’s nuclear facilities could be targeted.

The vow came in the wake of reactions following the U.S. drone strike that killed a top Iranian general and word from Tehran it was abandoning the 2015 agreement with world powers that curtailed its nuclear program.

“Iran will never have a nuclear weapon!” Trump tweeted in all caps. Trump pulled the U.S. out of the the Iran nuclear deal and reimposed sanctions on Iran in May 2018.

The Iranian government said Sunday it would ignore the deal, which restricted its uranium enrichment operations.

“Iran’s nuclear program will have no limitations in production, including enrichment capacity,” the government said.

Foreign Minister Javad Zarif tweeted the decision could be reversed if the U.S. comes back to the deal and lifts sanctions.

The U.S. conducted a drone strike late last Thursday near Baghdad airport that targeted a convoy carrying Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force, which directs Iran’s regional operations. He was believed the mastermind behind explosive devices that are effective against armored vehicles and has been blamed for the deaths or maiming of hundreds of Americans.

The strike capped a week of violence that included Iran-backed militia members storming the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. On Monday, Hezbollah Brigades demanded the embassy be shuttered.

Israel long has said if Iran obtained a nuclear weapon, it would pose an existential threat to the Jewish state and so would not allow Tehran to do so. Saudi Arabia also fears a nuclear Iran and has urged the U.S. to take military action.

Israel, which has its own nuclear arsenal though it never has acknowledged that capability, has taken preemptive action in the past. It and the United States were believed behind the Stuxnet virus, which crippled many of the centrifuges Iran was using in 2005.

Soleimani was buried Monday amid tears from Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khameini, who worked closely with the general on spreading Iranian influence. Unlike other Revolutionary Guards Corps generals, Soleimani answered only to Khameini, who treated him like a brother. Millions thronged the streets of Tehran to mourn Soleimani’s death and chant, “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.”

Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo justified the targeted strike, saying Soleimani was planning operations directed at U.S. diplomats and civilians and claimed the action had saved hundreds of lives. However, the action has managed to unify the Iranian people and cemented relations between Iran and Iraq.

Trump warned Iran if it retaliates, the U.S. would strike 52 sites, some of them significant cultural sites. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization reminded the U.S. it has signed treaties promising not to target cultural sites. Human Rights Watch accused Trump of threatening war crimes, a sentiment echoed by Zarif.