Updated June 18, 2025 at 3:50 PM EDT
President Trump on Wednesday declined to say whether the United States is moving closer to a decision to strike Iranian nuclear facilities, after Iran's supreme leader warned the U.S. against an attack and rejected Trump's call to surrender.
"You don't seriously think I'm going to answer that question," Trump said when a reporter at the White House asked whether the U.S. would attack Iran. "I may do it. I may not do it. I mean, nobody knows what I'm going to do."
Trump's remarks came as several lawmakers urged the president to refrain from taking military action against Iran.
In an interview on Wednesday with NPR's Here & Now, Sen. Tim Kaine, a Democrat from Virginia, warned against entering a war with Iran.
"A third war in the Middle East in this century would be a horrible, horrible mistake, and it's going to put U.S. service members at risk and also risk destabilizing the region," he said. Earlier this week, Kaine introduced a war powers resolution that would require Trump to seek congressional approval before U.S. troops could engage in military conflict against Iran.
Also on Wednesday, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned in a nationally broadcast address: "The Americans must understand — any U.S. military incursion will undoubtedly lead to irreversible consequences."
This comes amid nearly a week of fighting between U.S. ally Israel and Iran, and amid signals from U.S. and Israeli officials that Trump could be considering an attack on Iran.
In a string of social media posts on Tuesday, Trump demanded Iran's "UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER" and boasted, "We now have complete and total control of the skies over Iran," raising speculation that U.S. forces were already more involved than previously acknowledged.
Khamenei responded to the demand in his address Wednesday, his second public appearance since Israel launched strikes on his country last week.
"This is a nation that will never surrender to any form of imposition," he said.
On Tuesday, Trump also issued a direct threat against Khamenei. "We know exactly where the so-called 'Supreme Leader' is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there – We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now."
Trump spoke with national security team
Trump met with his national security team in the White House's Situation Room for over an hour on Tuesday to discuss the conflict. The meeting took place shortly after Trump left a summit of the Group of Seven, a conference of the world's leading industrialized nations, taking place in Canada, a day early to work on what he called "a real end" to Iran's nuclear program.
Trump has repeatedly stated that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.
A person briefed on the matter, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, told NPR that Israel believes the U.S. will eventually join the offensive against Iran and is currently awaiting a formal decision from Washington.
There was little sign of diplomatic efforts underway.
Trump told reporters Friday that Iranian officials had reached out to try to negotiate. "They even suggested they come to the White House," Trump said. "I said, 'It's very late,'" he said.
The Iranian mission to the United Nations swiftly denied that Iran was seeking White House talks. "The only thing more despicable than his lies is his cowardly threat to 'take out' Iran's Supreme Leader. Iran does NOT negotiate under duress," it said.
The U.S. was in talks with Iran over its nuclear program when Israel launched its surprise offensive last week, targeting Iran's nuclear and military sites.
Israel says its assault is necessary to prevent the country from building a nuclear weapon, which it sees as an existential threat. Iran maintains that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes. The Israeli strikes have killed more than 200 people in Iran, according to Iran's Health Ministry. But an independent group called the Human Rights Activists News Agency says it has counted 585 dead based on nongovernmental sources.
In retaliation, Iran has launched 400 ballistic missiles and 1,000 drones toward Israel, the Israeli military said Wednesday. Although Israel has intercepted much of the incoming, the strikes that made it through have killed 24 people and injured hundreds more, according to the Israeli Prime Minister's Office.
Two of Iran's centrifuge facilities hit
On Wednesday, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, said two centrifuge production facilities in Iran were hit, hours after the Israeli military said it had attacked a plant in Iran.
Centrifuges are critical for enriching uranium, a key step in the process of producing nuclear weapons.
This comes a day after the nuclear agency's director, Rafael Grossi, told the BBC it was likely all of the centrifuges at Natanz, Iran's largest nuclear facility, had been severely damaged by Israeli airstrikes.
But he said there was "very limited, if any, damage" visible at the underground Fordo enrichment plant, the country's second largest nuclear enrichment facility.
U.E. Embassy in Jerusalem closes
The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem said it would remain closed through Friday, citing security concerns. Some of the embassy staff and family members have already started leaving Israel.
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee wrote on social media that the embassy was working on evacuation plans for U.S. who want to leave. He says Americans will be notified of flights or ships if they enroll in a government website for travelers.
With Israel's airspace still closed to commercial traffic, tens of thousands of travelers remain stranded — both trying to leave the country and struggling to return. Israel's Transport Ministry estimates that up to 150,000 citizens are currently abroad.
Some foreign nationals have exited Israel overland via Jordan and Egypt, while others have been evacuated by sea.
Israeli airlines, meanwhile, have gained authorization to operate some emergency flights to bring Israelis home from Cyprus, France, Greece and Italy.
NPR's Juliana Kim and Michele Kelemen contributed to this report.
NPR's Daniel Estrin and Hadeel Al-Shalchi contributed reporting from Tel Aviv, Israel, and Jane Arraf contributed from Amman, Jordan.
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