January 18, 2026
Kyle Anzalone
“It’s time to look for new leadership in Iran,” Trump told POLITICO on Saturday. The remarks came after the President decided not to attack Iran on Wednesday. Trump was considering strikes on Iran after the Islamic Republic cracked down on protesters.
The President made multiple statements encouraging the demonstrators and threatening the Iranian government. Trump has also said he would attack the Islamic Republic for rebuilding its nuclear program and missile facilities.
While Trump elected not to attack Iran last week, US officials say strikes are still an option. According to sources speaking with Axios, a decision point could come within weeks.
The US currently has a significantly smaller military presence in the Middle East than it did during the Israeli war against Iran in June. One reason Trump backed away from attacking Iran was the concern that the strikes would not successfully remove the government.
Additionally, the US lacks missile defense systems in the region to protect American forces and Israel from retaliatory strikes.
However, the US is ramping up its military footprint in the Middle East as the USS Abraham Lincoln is set to arrive in the region later this week.
Advocates for regime change in Iran often call for installing Reza Pahlavi in Tehran. Pahlavi is the son of the former Shah of Iran, who was deposed by the Islamic Revolution. Trump dismissed the idea of Pahlavi taking power, suggesting he lacked popular support in Iran.
On Wednesday, American diplomats and military officials in the Middle East were convinced they would receive orders from President Trump to strike Iran. Expectations for a US attack on Iran were built over the previous two weeks as Trump threatened the Islamic Republic for cracking down on protesters.
Members of his cabinet, including Vice President JD Vance, were pushing Trump to authorize strikes. Vance argued Trump had drawn a red line that Iran had crossed by killing protesters, and the President must enforce it.
However, the President received a call from Netanyahu, who warned that the planned strikes would not be decisive and that the US lacked the military equipment in the Middle East to repel an Iranian counterattack.
Axios reporter Barak Ravid spoke with several US officials who said Netanyahu’s warning and the potential for Iranian retaliation were significant factors in Trump’s decision not to order an attack.
Since the US and Israeli was on Iran in June, two aircraft carrier strike groups and an advanced air defense system have been deployed out of the Middle East. Late last week, Trump dispatched the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to the region.
An Iranian official said on Sunday that at least 5,000 people had been killed over three weeks of demonstrations. The protests often turned into riots, and over 500 members of the Iranian security forces had also been killed.
While the demonstrations in Iran have mostly ceased, US officials say the potential for an attack on the Islamic Republic remains a possibility.
Kyle Anzalone
After backing away from bombing
Iran last week, Trump threatened regime change in Tehran
President Donald Trump suggested
that the US was still planning to conduct a regime change in Iran.
“It’s time to look for new leadership in Iran,” Trump told POLITICO on Saturday. The remarks came after the President decided not to attack Iran on Wednesday. Trump was considering strikes on Iran after the Islamic Republic cracked down on protesters.
The President made multiple statements encouraging the demonstrators and threatening the Iranian government. Trump has also said he would attack the Islamic Republic for rebuilding its nuclear program and missile facilities.
While Trump elected not to attack Iran last week, US officials say strikes are still an option. According to sources speaking with Axios, a decision point could come within weeks.
The US currently has a significantly smaller military presence in the Middle East than it did during the Israeli war against Iran in June. One reason Trump backed away from attacking Iran was the concern that the strikes would not successfully remove the government.
Additionally, the US lacks missile defense systems in the region to protect American forces and Israel from retaliatory strikes.
However, the US is ramping up its military footprint in the Middle East as the USS Abraham Lincoln is set to arrive in the region later this week.
Advocates for regime change in Iran often call for installing Reza Pahlavi in Tehran. Pahlavi is the son of the former Shah of Iran, who was deposed by the Islamic Revolution. Trump dismissed the idea of Pahlavi taking power, suggesting he lacked popular support in Iran.
Vice President Vance pushed Trump
to attack Iran
A call from Israeli Prime
Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convinced President Donald Trump not to order an
attack on Iran last week. Netanyahu was concerned that the attack would not be
decisive, and Israel would be unable to repel an Iranian counterattack without
more American military support.On Wednesday, American diplomats and military officials in the Middle East were convinced they would receive orders from President Trump to strike Iran. Expectations for a US attack on Iran were built over the previous two weeks as Trump threatened the Islamic Republic for cracking down on protesters.
Members of his cabinet, including Vice President JD Vance, were pushing Trump to authorize strikes. Vance argued Trump had drawn a red line that Iran had crossed by killing protesters, and the President must enforce it.
However, the President received a call from Netanyahu, who warned that the planned strikes would not be decisive and that the US lacked the military equipment in the Middle East to repel an Iranian counterattack.
Axios reporter Barak Ravid spoke with several US officials who said Netanyahu’s warning and the potential for Iranian retaliation were significant factors in Trump’s decision not to order an attack.
Since the US and Israeli was on Iran in June, two aircraft carrier strike groups and an advanced air defense system have been deployed out of the Middle East. Late last week, Trump dispatched the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to the region.
An Iranian official said on Sunday that at least 5,000 people had been killed over three weeks of demonstrations. The protests often turned into riots, and over 500 members of the Iranian security forces had also been killed.
While the demonstrations in Iran have mostly ceased, US officials say the potential for an attack on the Islamic Republic remains a possibility.
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