White House Reportedly Asked Pentagon for Plans to Strike Iran

National Security Adviser John Bolton asked Pentagon to draw up plans to attack Iran

The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that President Donald Trump's National Security Council asked the Pentagon to draw up military options to strike Iran in response to that country's support of insurgents in Iraq.

The request was made by National Security Adviser John Bolton following a failed mortar attack by militants aligned with Iran back in September. Militants fired three mortar rounds into the diplomatic section of Baghdad, which landed in a vacant lot near the Egyptian Embassy, and no one was injured. 

National Security Adviser John Bolton requested the plans from the Pentagon, according to the Journal's report. Plans for a strike were developed, but it's unclear if they were ever shared with the president or the NSC. 

A former senior administration official told the paper that people were "rattled" by the NSC's request.

"People were shocked. It was mind-boggling how cavalier they were about hitting Iran," they said. 

A spokesperson with the NSC told the Journal that the council regularly provides the president with options to respond to a variety of threats. 

"We continue to review the status of our personnel following attempted attacks on our embassy in Baghdad and our Basra consulate, and we will consider a full range of options to preserve their safety and our interests," NSC spokesman Garrett Marquis told the paper. 

The report also notes that Bolton has long advocated for regime change in Iran, once penning an op-ed for the New York Times entitled "To Stop Iran's Bomb, Bomb Iran." 

Photo: Getty Images


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