(JNS) US President Donald Trump said at the State of the Union on Tuesday that Iran has not yet given up on its pursuit of nuclear weapons.

The president told the assembled members of Congress, Supreme Court, the US military and his administration that the United States warned Iran not to attempt to rebuild its weapons programs after Operation Midnight Hammer in June.

“We wiped it out, and they want to start all over again, and are at this moment again, pursuing their sinister ambitions,” Trump said.

“We are in negotiations with them,” he said. “They want to make a deal, but we haven’t heard those secret words, ‘We will never have a nuclear weapon.’”

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said earlier on Tuesday that talks with the United States would resume shortly and that “Iran will under no circumstances ever develop a nuclear weapon” but refused to forgo what he claimed was “peaceful nuclear technology” in the Islamic Republic.

Trump also accused Iran of killing “at least” 32,000 people during its crackdown on domestic protests in the past few months.

“We stopped them from hanging a lot of them with the threat of serious violence,” Trump said. “But this is—some terrible people.”

Trump said his “preference” was to resolve issues with Iran through diplomacy but that he will “never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon.”

Robert Spitzer and Daniel S. Mariaschin, president and CEO respectively of B’nai B’rith International, stated that they watched the State of the Union address “with an acute focus on issues pertaining to our core mission, including security for Israel, fighting antisemitism and supporting affordable housing and health care for low-income seniors.”

“We support the Trump administration’s efforts to end Iran’s nuclear program and back the steps necessary to also stop Tehran’s ballistic missile program, upend its ongoing support for terror, eliminate its destabilizing actions around the world and stop its incessant threats to annihilate Israel,” they stated.

“We thank the president for his role in the successful return to Israel of all of the hostages Hamas captured in its Oct. 7, 2023, rampage. We are grateful the US-Israel partnership remains strong,” they stated. “The president spent significant time discussing immigration. We welcome efforts to enforce our borders but call on the president to direct ICE to focus its apprehension efforts on the violent criminals we all agree should be deported and to cooperate with local jurisdictions in this work.”

“The use of force against peaceful protesters is simply unacceptable and should not be permitted,” they added.

The B’nai B’rith leaders added that they “appreciate the president highlighting the high cost of prescription drugs—a huge expense for most seniors—and we are evaluating his proposals.”

“We also appreciate the president stressing a commitment to protect Social Security and Medicare, and we look forward to hearing more from the administration on this topic with further details,” they said. “The president noted the government will create matching contributions of $1,000 a year for individual retirement funds. We will study the plan as details become available.”

Arie Lipnick, chair of the US advisory board of the Combat Antisemitism Movement, told JNS that “tonight, President Donald Trump spoke with the sort of directness and clarity that has been lacking in too many capitals around the globe when it comes confronting genocidal regimes like the one in Tehran.”

“From college campuses to the United Nations, this president has led the fight against antisemitism with the full powers of his office,” Lipnick said. “Whether it’s his several executive orders or his unwavering commitment to the Jewish state along with his personal mission to bring every hostage home, no president of the United States has done more to fight antisemitism.”

“The resolve President Trump demonstrated in confronting the threat of Iranian nuclear weapons will make the entire world safer,” he added. “This historic address reaffirmed what many in the Jewish community already know: This is a president who backs his words with action.”

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