Trump says he doesn’t think new Iran leader Mojtaba Khamenei can ‘live in peace’

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President Trump confirmed Monday night that he was “not happy” with the choice of Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his late father as supreme leader of Iran, claiming in an interview that “I don’t believe he can live in peace.”

Trump also told Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst that his understanding was that the Tehran government “want to talk badly” about ending the US-Israel war, which entered its 11th day Tuesday.

“It’s possible, depends on what terms, possible, only possible,” Trump told Yingst while aboard Air Force One en route to Washington from Miami. “You know, we sort of don’t have to speak anymore, you know, if you really think about it, but it’s possible.”

President Trump speaks at the Republican Members Issues Conference on Monday, March 9, 2026. AP

Hours earlier, the president had given a glowing assessment of Operation Epic Fury to reporters at his Trump National Doral Miami golf club.

“They have no navy, they have no air force, they have no anti-aircraft equipment, it’s all been blown up,” the president said of Iran’s military strength. “They have no radar. They have no telecommunications, and they have no leadership. It’s all gone.

An explosion erupts after an Israeli airstrike on the village of Abbasiyeh in southern Lebanon on March 10, 2026. AFP via Getty Images
A man holds a sign with a picture of Iran’s new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei (R), next to his late father Ali Khamenei, in Tehran on March 9, 2026. AFP via Getty Images
Rescuers work in the rubble after airstrikes in Tehran on March 9, 2026. via REUTERS

“So, you know, you could look at that statement. We could, we could call it a tremendous success right now as we leave here. I could call it, or we could go further and we’re going to go further.”

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