President Donald Trump warned he’s prepared to strike Iran if it continues to build up its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Before his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to discuss the next phase of the plan to rebuild Gaza, Trump said that the US is poised to strike ‘fast’ if Iran continues to build up its military programs.
‘Now I hear that Iran is trying to build up again, and if they are, we have to knock them down. We’ll knock the hell out of them,’ Trump told reporters.
‘But hopefully that’s not happening. I heard Iran wants to make a deal. If they want to make a deal, that’s much smarter.’
Israeli officials have expressed concern recently about Iran rebuilding its long-range missile capabilities.
Over the summer, the US bombed Iran’s nuclear enrichment lab at Fordow in Operation Midnight Hammer after warnings from Israel. Trump has consistently said that Iran should not be allowed to create a nuclear weapon.
The president also noted that he is interested in getting Netanyahu a pardon for corruption allegations that have dogged the prime minister, noting on Monday that a pardon is ‘on its way’ and the Israeli leader has ‘done a phenomenal job.’
Though Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s office quickly denied any conversation about a pardon for Netanyahu. ‘There was no conversation between President Herzog and President Trump since the pardon was submitted,’ the Israeli president’s office said in a statement on Monday shortly after Trump’s remarks.
President Donald Trump greets Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago club, Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, in Palm Beach, Florida
A satellite overview shows the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Facility, along with damage from June airstrikes, amid the Iran-Israel conflict
Trump and Netanyahu have met five times this year in person
It is the first face-to-face meeting the pair have had since Trump traveled to Jerusalem in October to triumphantly declare a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
However, the peace has been tenuous, and both Hamas and Israel have accused each other of violating the agreement.
One sticking point for Netanyahu: Hamas has returned all but one of the 255 hostages taken during their October 7, 2023, assault on Israel.
Netanyahu wants Hamas to return the remains of the deceased hostage Ran Gvili, which are still in Gaza. The prime minister’s office has said Netanyahu will meet with Gvili’s parents while he is in Florida visiting the president.
The meeting between Trump and Netanyahu – the fifth this year – comes as White House officials have expressed frustration with Israel and Hamas’s slow-walking the second phase of the president’s peace plan.
The complicated phase two of the ceasefire involves the establishment of a technocratic Palestinian government, marking an end to Hamas’ decades long rule of the Gaza Strip.
It also sets up the rebuilding of the tattered Palestinian territory, which is to be overseen by Trump and a group he calls the Board of Peace. If all goes to plan, the ‘technocratic, apolitical’ interim Palestinian government would oversee the daily operations within Gaza while reporting directly to the Board of Peace and President Trump.
Trump’s 20-point peace plan, which was approved by the U.N., would give the Board of Peace a two-year, renewable mandate to reconstruct Gaza.
Palestinian youth walk along a tent camp for displaced people as the sun sets in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, Friday, Dec. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Amal Matar, 65, sits next to the oven as she cooks for her family in the Al-Shati camp, northern Gaza Strip, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
The members of the Board of Peace have yet to be announced, though the panel was expected to be revealed sometime this year. Still, the announcement could be pushed to next month.
Phase two of the plan also involves the deployment of an international stabilizing force to oversee the security of Gaza after Hamas militants disarm.
Hamas has been reluctant to fully give up its arsenal, however, and instead is interested in ‘freezing or storing’ its weapons while insisting their rights to bear arms.
There are also questions about which nations will take the lion’s share of the security responsibilities. Both Israel and US forces will be involved, as will several other to-be-determined nations.
Despite the progress, Israel has conducted lethal strikes within Gaza, complicating matters. Hamas has also been accused of violating the agreement after an improvised explosive device injured an Israeli soldier last week.
The meeting also comes after reports indicating top White House officials have lost confidence in Netanyahu.
Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles have reportedly been ‘frustrated’ with Netanyahu, Axios reports.
Trump, one White House insider claims, is one of the only major players who still likes’ the embattled prime minister.
