Why Trump, his team are not in Washington during the US-Israeli strikes on Iran?
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "Why Trump, his team are not in Washington during the US-Israeli strikes on Iran?")
President Donald Trump monitors US military operations in Iran from his Florida estate. Photograph: (White House)
Key members of Trump's Cabinet and military advisers, who form his national security team, also flew to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach. He posted his eight-minute-long video on US military actions on Truth Social from his residence.
Donald Trump was not in Washington while the United States and Israel launched military strikes across multiple targets in Iran on Saturday (Feb 28). Confirming this, the White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said US President Donald Trump and his top aides were “closely” monitoring the Iran situation from his Florida resort.
“The President and his national security team will continue to closely monitor the situation throughout the day,” Leavitt said on X, adding that Trump also “monitored the situation overnight at Mar-a-Lago.”
Trump was already away from the national capital when the final decision to launch the operation against Iran was taken. He had flown to Corpus Christi, Texas, on Friday night for a scheduled appearance before heading to his Florida estate.
Key members of his Cabinet and military advisers, who form Trump’s national security team, also flew to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach. He posted his eight-minute-long video on US military actions on Truth Social and held a direct phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from the estate.
Trump’s Florida estate is often referred to as the “Winter White House” since 2017, when he took over the presidency in his first term. President Trump has used the estate to conduct high-stakes, “transactional” diplomacy, including his meeting with Argentine leader Javier Milei and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
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The US president prefers Mar-a-Lago over White House for key military operations, including Operation Absolute Resolve, leading to the capture of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, and ongoing military operations against the Islamic Republic.
According to analysts, by using Mar-a-Lago for important events, Trump is projecting a specific image of his presidency, operating outside the traditional “Beltway” of Washington while still maintaining full command of the US military.
Iran conflict spills into wider West Asia
On Saturday, the United States and Israel launched joint military strikes on multiple targets across Iran following the failure of recent nuclear talks in Oman and Switzerland. The military strikes, named Operation Roaring Lion by Israel and Operation Epic Fury by the United States, reportedly hit over 30 sites across Iran, including government buildings in Tehran and suspected nuclear facilities.
In retaliation, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) initiated Operation True Promise 4, targeting Israel and American bases across West Asia. Tehran launched missiles toward the US Fifth Fleet in Manama, Bahrain, and Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, the largest US military installation in the Middle East, as well as other sites in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Syria.
The US–Israel strikes and Iranian counterstrikes triggered fears of the conflict spiralling into a regional war as several countries in West Asia came under attack. Missile exchanges between the two sides continued, leading to widespread airspace closures and flight disruptions across the region.
