Inside Trump’s Iran warning — and the unexpected pause that followed
On Jan. 13, President Donald Trump warned Iran and told protesters that "help is on its way," setting expectations of U.S. action. Days later, with no strikes carried out, the...
By Fox News · Fox News
On Jan. 13, President Donald Trump warned Iran and told protesters that "help is on its way," setting expectations of U.S. action. Days later, with no strikes carried out, the pause has become the central question in Washington. U.S. and regional security experts say the decision was driven by caution, not retreat. A strike risked retaliation against U.S. forces and Israel. It also raised questions about who would follow Iran’s leadership and whether intervention would undercut the protest movement Trump appeared to encourage. Fox News Digital has learned from background conversations with U.S. officials that internal debates over Iran’s post-regime leadership and the lack of a clear successor factored into deliberations over a potential strike. Officials grappled not only with how to hit Iran, but with who would come next. IRAN STRIKES COULD SIGNAL LIMITS OF BEIJING, MOSCOW’S POWER AS US FLEXES STRENGTH Trump raised that uncertainty Jan. 15 when he publicly questioned whether Reza Pahlavi, the Western-backed son of Iran’s ousted shah, could realistically govern after more than four decades in exile. Pahlavi has not been to Iran since his family was forced out during the 1979 revolution. "He seems very nice, but I don't know how he'd play within his own country," Trump told Reuters. But Trump had insisted to protesters Jan. 13: "KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!!... HELP IS ON ITS WAY." Later, he said Iran had agreed to halt its executions, dialing back U.S. tensions with the Islamic Republic. To be sure, intervention could still come once U.S. assets reach the Middle East. A U.S. aircraft carrier is currently steaming toward the Gulf, having departed the Indo-Pacific Jan. 15 as the threat of conflict reached a fever pitch. The pause has nonetheless drawn backlash , where critics argue Trump’s promise that "help is on the way" may have raised expectations or emboldened protesters. One Iranian citizen who witnessed violence during demonstrations said p…