Hours before the vice presidential debate, former President Donald Trump addressed a crowd at his campaign rally in Wisconsin and criticized the Biden administration over Iran's historic attack on Israel.
“Recently, Iran launched 181 ballistic missiles at Israel… I have been talking about World War III for a long time and I don't want to make predictions because predictions always come true. We are not going to make [predictions]…but they are very close to a global catastrophe,” Trump said. “We have a non-existent president and a non-existent vice president who should be in charge, but no one knows what's going on.”
Trump's comments come after Israel said Iran launched 181 ballistic missiles at the country, marking the largest ballistic missile attack in history.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attack was in retaliation for the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut, Lebanon, in an Israeli airstrike late last week and the killing of Hamas leader , Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran in July, according to Fox News' foreign affairs chief. Correspondent Trey Yingst.
IRAN'S ATTACK ON ISRAEL IS 'INEFFECTIVE' BUT A 'SIGNIFICANT ESCALATION': WHITE HOUSE
Former President Donald Trump, Republican presidential candidate, listens at a campaign event at Macomb Community College Town Hall, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024, in Warren, Michigan. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Iran's Revolutionary Guard warned in a statement carried by Iranian state media that if Israel responds to the missile bombardment, it “will face crushing attacks.”
Trump accused President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris of weak leadership on the world stage.
“That's why Israel was attacked a moment ago. Because they no longer respect our country. The so-called enemy no longer respects our country,” Trump said.
IRAN FIRES MULTIPLE MISSILE ATTACKS ACROSS ISRAEL
Trump criticized President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris after Iran launched a massive ballistic missile attack on Israel. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Trump claimed that Biden and Harris enriched Iran in a very short time.
“Now they have $300 billion. They're rich. I mean, they pay $6 billion every time they kidnap someone, it's always $6 billion,” Trump said.
“Iran was on the verge of bankruptcy. They had no money left. They had no money for Hamas. They had no money for Hezbollah. The people they are fighting now would have been willing to make any deal. You could have made any deal. But Kamala flooded them with American money and all that. Now, I mean, they're getting flooded with cash. Honestly, it's not even credible,” Trump continued.
PENTAGON SENDS 'FEW THOUSAND' PERSONNEL TO MIDDLE EAST THE DAY AFTER BIDEN SAID HE WOULD NOT ADD COMBAT TROOPS
Gun tracers are seen fired into the air in celebration of Iran's missile bombardment of Israel over Beirut, Lebanon, October 1, 2024. (REUTERS/Louisa Gouliamaki)
National security advisor Jake Sullivan said that Iranian missile attack against Israel was “defeated and ineffective” and that the US military coordinated with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to repel the attacks.
“US naval destroyers joined Israeli air defense units in firing interceptors to shoot down incoming missiles. President Biden and Vice President Harris monitored the attack and response from the White House Situation Room, accompanied in person and by remotely by your national security team,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan characterized the attack as a “significant escalation” while speaking at a White House briefing on Tuesday.
Sullivan said no deaths were reported on the Israeli side, although the White House is monitoring the reported death of a Palestinian civilian in Jericho, in the West Bank.
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“We are not aware of any damage to aircraft or strategic military assets in Israel. In short, based on what we know at this point, this attack appears to have been defeated and ineffective. The word fog of war was invented for a situation like This is a situation fluid,” he said.
Many missiles were intercepted by Israel's missile defense systems, while others hit the ground.
The Pentagon says the United States fired approximately 12 interceptors against Iranian missiles.
Fox News' Michael Dorgan, Stephen Sorace, Liz Friden, Nicolas Rojas, Greg Norman and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
