Trump will support more strikes on Iran if it rebuilds its missiles program

PALM BEACH, Florida — President Donald Trump said Monday that he would back an Israeli attack on Iran if it rebuilds its nuclear capabilities, vowing that “we will knock the hell out of them.”

Ahead of a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Palm Beach estate, Trump said he heard Iran is trying to grow its ballistic missiles program.

"Now I hear that Iran is trying to build up again. And if they are, we’re going to have to knock them down,” he said alongside Netanyahu. “We'll knock the hell out of them, but hopefully that's not happening.”

The president added that he heard Iran wants to make a deal, but said he supports an Israeli attack if either ballistic missiles or nuclear weapons programs continue.

“If they will continue with the missiles, yes. The nuclear, fast,” Trump said.

Trump ordered a U.S. military strike on Iranian nuclear sites in June, after which he said the country’s capabilities were “totally obliterated.”

The Israeli prime minister met with Trump on Monday to discuss the growing threat from Iran, as well as the ceasefire in Gaza.

Ahead of his sit-down with Netanyahu, he also endorsed the idea of a pardon for the prime minister from Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

"I think he will, how do you not? He's a wartime prime minister who's a hero,” Trump said. “I spoke to the president, he told me it's on the way.”

Netanyahu is in the middle of a corruption trial and has requested that Herzog grant him a preemptive pardon before any conviction.

Netanyahu is the second foreign leader to meet with Trump at Mar-a-Lago in a week’s time —he hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday, where he expressed optimism that they were on the precipice of a deal to end the war with Russia.