world news: Donald Trump publicly shifted blame for the U. S. campaign against Iran onto his own Secretary of Defense at a Monday roundtable with national military and law enforcement leaders. He singled out Pete Hegseth, saying, “Pete [Hegseth, ] I think you were the first one to speak up and you said, ‘Let’s do it because you can’t let them have a nuclear weapon. ’” The remarks arrive as the conflict approaches its one-month milestone after attacks that have so far killed 13 American service members and as claims swirl about talks to end hostilities.
What Trump said and who he blamed
At the roundtable, Donald Trump placed visible responsibility for the decision to go to war on Pete Hegseth, naming him directly. Pete Hegseth, identified in the meeting as Secretary of Defense and a public face of the war effort, has spent much of his time delivering forceful commentary about lethality and rules-of-engagement to the Pentagon press corps. Hegseth has also publicly criticized reporters for coverage he views as insufficiently positive. Trump repeated that Hegseth was “the first one to speak up” in favor of striking Iran, shifting the onus for the choice toward a senior Cabinet figure.
World News: Immediate fallout
The president’s assignment of blame came as he defended the administration’s handling of surprise Iranian strikes on other Gulf nations. Trump told reporters, “Look at the way they attacked, unexpectedly, all of those countries, ” and added, “Nobody was even thinking about it. ” He also repeated contested claims that negotiations have begun to end hostilities and to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while Iranian officials say they are engaged in no such negotiations. Trump named a “top person” in the regime as communicating with his son-in-law Jared Kushner—who holds no official government position—and with United States Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff.
What’s next
The administration now faces questions about lines of responsibility and internal decision-making as the campaign nears its one-month mark. Expect senior officials to be pressed for public clarifications about who advocated for military action and what assessments were made of potential Iranian retaliation. Congressional and public scrutiny is likely to focus on casualty figures and on the contradictory negotiation claims; those developments will shape how the story unfolds in world news as officials respond and provide further detail.
