South Dakota retired general: Israeli strikes necessary
SIOUX FALLS, SD (KELO) — A retired South Dakota army general is applauding Israel's attacks on nuclear facilities in Iran.
Lynn Hartsell, of Canton, says the airstrikes have dealt a serious blow to Iran's nuclear capabilities and left its military greatly weakened.
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Hartsell says the Israeli strike on Iran was necessary in order to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions.
'If it did not shut them down, it certainly set them back a long, long ways,' Hartsell said.
Some see the Israeli attacks and retaliation by Iran as inflaming the region into an all-out war. But Hartsell doesn't see other countries aligning themselves with a weakened Iran.
'I think frankly, a lot of people in the Middle East are probably silently appreciative of the fact that capability has been taken down,' Hartsell said.
The White House says it had no role in the attacks on Iran. But Hartsell points out that weeks earlier, President Trump had telegraphed that some type of action was coming if Iran wasn't willing to reach a deal on its nuclear program.
'I believe it was about back in April that Trump said, Iran, you've got 60 days to negotiate a deal. I think the 60 days were up. And he had said something not good is going to happen you if you don't negotiate that deal,' Hartsell said.
Iran says it will no long take part in nuclear talks that were scheduled for this weekend. But Hartsell says Iran has never negotiated in good faith.
'If somebody thinks that Iran is real trustworthy, back home, where I grew up, we'd say their cornbread wasn't done in the middle. I just think they'd be a little on the naive side… maybe permanently stuck on stupid,' Hartsell said.
Hartsell says Israel faces the biggest risk from ballistic missiles fired from Iran into densely populated areas. He says drone strikes by Iran have proven to be ineffective.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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