Roving Periscope: Are the US, Israel plotting a regime-change in Iran?

Virendra Pandit

New Delhi: Amid the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran, which has left around 300 dead since Friday last week, US President Donald Trump abruptly cut short his visit to Canada and left the ongoing Group of Seven (G-7) Summit there on Monday, declaring that he has “much bigger” aims than merely securing a ceasefire between the two warring countries in the Middle East.

He said his early departure from the G-7 Summit has “nothing to do” with working on a ceasefire between Israel and Iran; instead, he said, his reason is “much bigger than that.”

The controversial statements of the US and Israeli leaders have triggered panic in the Middle East, and elsewhere, and throne up questions seeking answers, the media reported on Tuesday.

Are the US and Israel plotting to topple the Islamist fanatic regime in Iran whose Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khomeini has, time and again, threatened to ‘wipe out’ the two enemies? Can the Shia Iran unite with the Sunni Arabs against the US and Israel in the event of the Ayatollah’s ‘assassination’? Will the Arab Sheikhs go against Tehran and antagonize their own people? Why did Trump vetoed Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s alleged plan to kill the Ayatollah ‘for the time being?’

In comments to reporters aboard Air Force One, the US President said he wanted a “real end” to the nuclear problem with Iran, including the country “giving up entirely” on the idea of nuclear weapons and their existing nuclear program “wiped out,” rather than simply obtaining a ceasefire in the region, CBS reported. 

Trump did not, however, clearly spell out his next steps as he returned to the US capital. 

While the G-7 leaders met in Alberta, Canada, Israel continued to bombard Iran to disable its nuclear program, prompting Tehran to fire masses of missiles and drones at the Jewish state in retaliation.

On Monday, Trump had warned residents of Tehran to evacuate the city, while also telling Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions and seek a peace deal. 

The US President, asked about his call for a Tehran evacuation, said he wants people to be safe. He “may” send a high-level official like Steven Witkoff, his special envoy for the Middle East, or Vice President J.D. Vance to meet with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi over stalled nuclear deal negotiations.

Asked if Iran’s nuclear program would be destroyed if the US got involved in the conflict militarily, Trump said he hoped it’s “wiped out long before that.” He reiterated a warning to Iran to avoid retaliating against the US, saying he’s prepared to “come down so hard” on Iran if they “do anything to our people.”

French President Emmanuel Macron previously suggested to reporters in Canada on Monday that Trump’s early departure from the G-7 meeting could mean a positive development in the ongoing conflict, saying that “if the US can obtain a ceasefire that is a good thing.”

However, Trump, in the Truth Social post, said Macron was wrong about his intentions. 

“Publicity seeking President Emmanuel Macron, of France, mistakenly said that I left the G-7 Summit, in Canada, to go back to D.C. to work on a ‘cease fire’ between Israel and Iran. Wrong!” Trump wrote on Tuesday, shortly after boarding Air Force One for his flight to the US capital.

“He has no idea why I am now on my way to Washington, but it certainly has nothing to do with a Cease Fire. Much bigger than that,” Trump wrote. “Whether purposely or not, Emmanuel always gets it wrong. Stay Tuned!”

The irrepressible Trump declared: “We’re looking at better than a ceasefire… A real end. Not a ceasefire. An end.”

On Truth Social, he firmly denied initiating any talks with Iran over a ceasefire, calling reports “HIGHLY FABRICATED, FAKE NEWS,” and reiterating that Iran “should have taken the deal that was on the table.” He added, “If they want to talk, they know how to reach me.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Trump left for Washington “so he can attend to many important matters,” and in a follow-up post on X said the departure was due to “what’s going on in the Middle East.”

Amid renewed airstrikes between the two adversaries, Israel’s military claimed it had killed Ali Shadmani, Iran’s wartime chief of staff and one of its most senior commanders viewed as very close to the Supreme Leader. In the last five days, Israel claimed it has already killed all top army commanders and nuclear scientists of Iran, numbering together around 15.

Air attack warning sirens in Israel were sounded several times as Iran launched a barrage of fresh strikes at Tel Aviv early on Tuesday, forcing panicked citizens to take shelter in protected areas. Israel’s national emergency services reported no injury to any civilian in the latest Iranian attack. As the fifth day is underway for the Israel-Iran conflict, the Israeli death toll has reached 22 and according to Iran’s health ministry, the total death toll from Israeli strikes has risen to at least 224.

Meanwhile, leaders from several countries, who gathered in Canada to attend the G-7 Summit, tried to help diffuse the heightened tension between Israel and Iran. French President Emmanuel Macron said that Trump told G-7 leaders that he is considering the prospect of a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. “An offer was made especially to get a ceasefire and to then kick-start broader discussions,” Macron said.

Later, however, some of the G7 nations supported Israel and labelled Iran as a source of instability in the Middle East.