President Donald Trump vehemently denied that he was pushed into joining the military operation against Iran by Israel.

The joint Israeli-U.S. strikes on Iran have entered a fourth day and are likely to continue for some time as Iran retaliates with missile strikes against its neighbors in the Middle East.

'Israel was ready, and we were ready. And we've had a very, very powerful impact because virtually everything they have has been knocked out now.'

Opponents of the strikes have lobbed the accusation that the Israelis pushed Trump into joining their military action. At the White House on Tuesday, he rebuffed the suggestion that Israel, and specifically Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was to blame.

"Did Israel force your hand to launch these strikes against Iran? Did Netanyahu pull the United States into this war?" a reporter asked.

"No. I might have forced their hand," Trump said.

"You see, we were having negotiations with these lunatics. And it was my opinion that they were going to attack first. They were going to attack if we didn't do it. They were going to attack first — I felt strongly about that. And we have great negotiators, great people, people that do this very successfully and have done it all their lives, very successful," he explained.

"Based on the way the negotiation was going, I think they were going to attack first. And I didn't want that to happen," he added. "So, if anything, I might have forced Israel's hand. But Israel was ready, and we were ready. And we've had a very, very powerful impact because virtually everything they have has been knocked out now."

The president also offered what he thought might be the "worst-case scenario" in Iran.

"I guess the worst case would be, we do this, and then somebody takes over who is as bad as the previous person, right," the president said. "That could happen. We don't want that to happen. That would probably be the worst: You go through this, and then in five years you realize you put somebody in who was no better."

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The president was hosting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said his country supports the effort to remove the regime in Iran.

"As I said in Germany the last two days, we are supporting the United States and Israel to get rid of this terrible terrorist regime, and we are looking forward to [the] day after," Merz said. "And we have to talk about the strategy, what is following after this regime is away."

The strikes on Iran have led directly to the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was also reportedly killed, though an aide told Turkish news outlet Anadolu Agency about Ahmadinejad on Sunday: "I am in touch with him. All is good."

The remaining regime has responded by striking at nearby Middle East states hosting U.S. military bases and assets.

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The Israeli military has carried out a strike on Iran’s Supreme Council during a meeting to select a new supreme leader, an Israeli official claims.

A senior Israeli official told Fox News that the attack happened on Tuesday “while they were counting the votes for the appointment of the supreme leader.” The strike reportedly took place in Tehran, where the regime’s remaining senior officials were gathered to determine who would replace the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who died in a strike over the weekend.

Israeli analysts estimate more than 1,000 enemy combatants have been killed inside Iran since the campaign began.

The bombing is one of the most direct blows yet against Iran’s political command structure as part of the joint U.S. and Israeli campaign now entering its fourth day. Since the launch of the coordinated operations targeting Iranian leadership and infrastructure, more than 40 of Iran’s top leaders, including Khamenei, have reportedly been killed, fracturing the regime’s chain of command.

Israeli analysts estimate more than 1,000 enemy combatants have been killed inside Iran since the campaign began.

RELATED: Iranian state TV hijacked with Trump, Netanyahu message urging citizens to 'seize control'

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has framed the broader operation as necessary to dismantle Iran’s ballistic missile and nuclear capabilities, arguing the regime’s long-term objective threatens not only Israel but the West.

Vice President JD Vance says that the administration’s objective remains limited: Prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and ensure it cannot rebuild that capability.

"There's just no way that Donald Trump is going to allow this country to get into a multi-year conflict, with no clear end in sight and no clear objective," Vance said, according to Fox News. "He's defined that objective as Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon and has to commit long-term to never trying to rebuild the nuclear capability."

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