President Donald Trump is stalling on whether to join Israeli airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear program, with White House insiders telling the New York Post his hesitation stems from fears of creating “another Libya.”
According to sources close to the administration, Trump has specifically cited the U.S.-backed ouster of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 in private discussions about possible bombing plans.
“He doesn’t want it to turn into Libya,” one official familiar with the administration’s deliberations told the Post. Trump reportedly expressed these concerns in the days leading up to Israel’s strikes on Iran.
“There are two reasons Trump talks about Libya: the first is the chaos after what we did to Gaddafi,” an insider told the Post. “The second is the Libya intervention made it more difficult to negotiate deals with countries like North Korea and Iran."
Other sources, briefed by individuals who heard the president directly, said Trump also mentioned Afghanistan and Iraq as cautionary examples. Another factor, sources told the Post, is “there is still dealing with Iran’s response,” including possible retaliation through terrorism.
“As far as President Trump goes, he’s not going to get in the business of who runs Iran, that’s very salable to his base,” the administration insider said.
“He’d rather have a deal,” the official added.
Gaddafi, Libya's longtime dictator who ruled for 42 years, was overthrown in 2011 after a U.S.-backed NATO bombing campaign, plunging the oil-rich North African country into a decade of chaos, the Post reported Thursday.