Will the US attack Iran this weekend? Trump's envoy says, 'absolutely'

The United States could strike Iran as soon as this weekend, US envoy Tom Barrack said on Friday, amid escalating threats from Washington and Israel. "Could there be a strike this weekend? Absolutely," Tom Barrack, the US ambassador to Turkey and point man on Syria who does not have a direct role on Iran, told podcast host Mario Nawfal.

President Donald Trump is very clear. He's open and available and accessible to a deal and we've been at the table for months and months and months, Barrack said in an interview during his visit to the Gulf. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly vowed in recent days to topple Iran's clerical leadership. His remarks come after two major bombing campaigns against the country since last year, as he faces elections on Tuesday.

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Trump has also hinted that he is open to resuming strikes following a prolonged diplomatic deadlock. However, he previously said that such action would not take place before the US congressional elections on November 3. Barrack's remarks contradicted Netanyahu's position, with the US envoy saying that Washington was not seeking to overthrow the Islamic republic. Iran has been a sworn enemy of the United States and Israel since the 1979 revolution that toppled the pro-Western shah.

"If you keep threatening the world, our allies, the Gulf, there will be a consequence. The consequence won't be regime change," Barrack said. "The United States, the president of the United States, has said he's not interested in regime change," he added. "The problem with regime change always is, what's the day-two scenario?"

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