Tulsi Gabbard, the former US director of national intelligence, warned US President Donald Trump against the war on Iran, days before its eruption on February 28, The Wall Street Journal reported.
“Days before going to war with Iran in February, President Trump summoned his intelligence chief to the Oval Office to ask whether a full-on assault was a good idea,” according to the report.
Gabbard warned Trump that “killing its supreme leader (Imam Sayyed) Ali Khamenei would likely bring in a more hardline regime that would be more inclined to pursue nuclear weapons.”
She also predicted that Tehran would close the Strait of Hormuz and attack US forces and allies in the region, the report added.
The newspaper said various top officials, including the vice president, warned Trump of the risks of war, but that the president was eventually convinced by senior aides and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who told him that “Iran was at its weakest point in decades.”
At one point, in April, WSJ said Trump asked a friend whether he should escalate the fighting against Iran, but the friend advised against it and urged him to end the conflict.
The Journal noted Trump’s repeated frustration throughout the war with the regime’s resilience, and his efforts to find an off-ramp through diplomacy, which have so far produced little result.
In March 2026, Trump indicated that Gabbard differed with him on the issue of Iran and its nuclear program. Gabbard resigned from the post, citing family reasons, effective June 19, 2026.
Source: WSJ (edited by Al-Manar)