President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are going against the headwinds and doing what needs to be done to neutralize the Iranian threat, retired Lt. Army Col. Darin Gaub told Newsmax on Thursday.
"Headwinds are coming from every single direction. And, of course, Oct. 7 [2023] provided a lot of the impetus to get the people of Israel in general behind [Netanyahu], knowing that they had to do this now because this was just going to continue," Gaub said on "The Record With Greta Van Susteren."
"I agree, they've always had these kind of headwinds for years. [Former Palestinian leader] Yasser Arafat even said that war is deceit, and he used every single possible means in order to continue the fight against Israel through every means.
"But now you've got Netanyahu and the Trump administration that are aligned in their strategic goals, and they're showing what that can look like in action," he said.
"It's a very unique time in history to see both of those coming together, two people willing to largely disregard what the United Nations says and go forth with what they know they need to do on the strategic side of things to achieve what they have to for the people of Israel. In some ways, it's great to see."
When asked about Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's declaration of historic victory over Israel, Gaub brushed it off, saying, "If that's what victory for Iran looks like, let's have some more of it.
"Although I would, of course, prefer just peace and this not have to go any further. I think most people would actually prefer that.
"The damage to the three [nuclear] installations I think will be part of that, but ... you've got a guy who has changed very quickly in the last couple of weeks. He's exhausted; he's tired; and, frankly, what he is doing is trying to protect himself and maintain his own regime. And that's what he's in – self-protection mode," he said.
"This is not a moment of pride. I'm sure he knows that Iran didn't win this thing by any stretch of the imagination.
"But he has to project what he thinks is some form of power and control over the people there, because that's going to quickly become the greatest threat to his ability to maintain his position is if the people of Iran stand up and say enough and remove their own dictators," Gaub said.
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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