Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia \u2014 US President Donald Trump was reportedly\nwarned in advance about potential Iranian retaliation against American\nallies in the Gulf, according to reports that emerged on Tuesday, 17\nMarch 2026, amid Trump\u2019s earlier claims that he was surprised by\nTehran\u2019s retaliatory strikes against military bases and civilian\nfacilities in the region.<\/p>\n
A US official and two sources familiar with US intelligence\nassessments revealed that pre-war intelligence reviews had included this\nrisk. Although not stated as a certainty, the possibility of Iranian\nattacks against neighbouring countries was included in the list of\npotential outcomes.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe pre-war intelligence assessment did not say that an Iranian\nresponse was a guarantee, but it certainly was on the list of potential\noutcomes,\u201d one source speaking on condition of anonymity told\nReuters.<\/p>\n
However, President Trump made contradictory statements whilst\nattending a Kennedy Center council meeting at the White House on Monday.\nOn that occasion, he insisted that Iranian retaliatory strikes against\nQatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Kuwait were\nentirely unexpected.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey (Iran) should not have targeted all these other nations in the\nMiddle East. No one expected that. We were surprised,\u201d said Donald\nTrump.<\/p>\n
Trump\u2019s statement adds to a growing list of administration claims\ndeemed unsupported by official intelligence reports, including the\nassertion that Iran would soon possess missiles capable of reaching the\nUS mainland. These various justifications were used by Trump and his\naides to defend the decision to join Israel in launching air strikes\nagainst Iran since 28 February.<\/p>\n
Beyond the risk of attacks on neighbouring countries, Trump was also\nreportedly briefed before operations began that Tehran would likely\nattempt to close the Strait of Hormuz, which is vital to the global\neconomy. Over the past two weeks, Iranian drones and missiles have\nstruck various targets across Gulf nations, ranging from military bases\nto energy facilities.<\/p>\n
When questioned again at a signing ceremony in the Oval Office on\nMonday afternoon about whether he truly received no briefing on the risk\nof Iranian attacks against Gulf nations, Trump again strongly denied\nthis.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, no, no, no, no. The smartest experts, no one thought they would\nattack,\u201d Trump stated.<\/p>\n
A second source familiar with the matter explained that the US\nintelligence community had assessed that the US-Israeli strike plan\naimed at killing senior Iranian leadership would likely trigger\nretaliation against American military and diplomatic positions. However,\nthe Trump administration reportedly did not order the evacuation of\ndiplomatic staff from several regional embassies until air strikes\nactually commenced.<\/p>\n
The intelligence community also warned that Iran possessed both the\ncapability and likelihood to expand its retaliation against American\nallies in the region. To date, the White House and the Office of the\nDirector of National Intelligence have declined to provide official\ncomments regarding the discrepancy between the President\u2019s claims and\nthese intelligence reports.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/trump-dismissed-arab-allies-despite-being-warned-of-iranian-retaliation-1773755547", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }