Obama condemns Trump’s ‘unnecessary war’ on Iran

WASHINGTON, Oct 25: Former US President Barack Obama has delivered scathing criticism of Trump at rallies ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.

“The current president chose to make a series of bad decisions,” Obama said in Cleveland, Ohio. “Most importantly, he decided to start an unnecessary war that nobody asked for.”

The US-Israel war on Iran has sent oil prices soaring as Tehran effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz after being attacked.

Trump slammed Obama’s speech in a post on Truth Social on Sunday. “Obama was a grossly incompetent president. He paid off Iran with $billions and gave them a road to a nuclear weapon,” he said, referring to the 2015 nuclear deal.

Obama criticised Trump’s war on Iran, saying it is “the reason why the price of just about everything is up”.

Speaking at a campaign rally in Ohio ahead of the US midterm elections, Obama said: “Iran didn’t have nuclear weapons because I had put a deal in place that everybody acknowledged kept them from getting nukes. And I didn’t have to fire a missile to do it. I just had to engage in diplomacy.”

“Iran now has veto power over the Strait of Hormuz, where oil goes through to the world market,” the former president said.

“This is the reason why the price of oil is up. This is the reason why the price of diesel is up. This is the reason why the price of just about everything is up.”

Under the 2015 Obama deal with Iran, officially called the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), Iran agreed to restrict the enrichment of uranium and subject itself to inspections in exchange for the relaxation of sanctions. Trump withdrew from the JCPOA in 2018, during his first term.�" AL JAZEERA