US President Donald Trump has been presented with military options that reportedly include the targeted killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his son Mojtaba Khamenei.
According to a report by Axios, which cited senior administration sources,
"They have something for every scenario. One scenario takes out the ayatollah and his son and the mullahs," said a senior Trump adviser, referring to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his son Mojtaba, who is seen as a potential successor.
Trump is, however, yet to take the final call. "The President hasn't decided to strike yet. I know that because we haven't struck. He might never do it. He might wake up tomorrow and say, 'That's it'," he added.
Of the military options laid out before Trump, there is no clarity yet on what he choses to go ahead with. "What the president chooses no one knows. I don't think he knows."
The adviser said the Pentagon had presented a range of possible courses of action for Trump to consider. A second source confirmed to Axios that a plan to kill Khamenei and his son was floated to Trump several weeks ago.
"Trump is keeping his options open. He could decide on an attack at any moment," the report said quoting another senior Trump adviser.
"The media may continue to speculate on the President's thinking all they want, but only President Trump knows what he may or may not do," White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said.
Earlier this week, Trump issued a stern warning to Iran asking it to make a deal over its nuclear program or face "really bad things". He set a deadline of 10 to 15 days, drawing a threat from Tehran to retaliate against US bases in the region if attacked.
The US President said negotiations with Iran to end the tense standoff were going well but demanded that Tehran reach a "meaningful" agreement. "Otherwise bad things happen," Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to attack Iran, told the first meeting of his Board of Peace in Washington.
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