'They will be safe in years to come': Melania says Iran war is for children's 'future'

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania on Monday hosted thousands of children and their families at the White House Easter Egg Roll. The event, a day after President Trump's expletive-laden threat to Iran, saw both him and the First Lady facing questions about the Middle East conflict. In one such interaction, Melania was asked if she had any message for the children in Iran. 

"Well, all of this is happening for their future," she said, adding, "they will be safe in years to come." President Trump, standing beside her, reinforced the message, saying that the U.S. is "fighting for their parents, their grandparents," and "their future." "I will tell you, it was given to me loud and clear that the times the Iranian people are most unhappy…is when those bombs stop," Trump added. 

The President then reiterated that the Iran war could "hopefully" end very quickly. "We could leave right now, it would take them 15 years to rebuild what they have…we could leave right now, but I want to finish it up," he said. "Iran cannot have nuclear weapons. They are lunatics. And you can't put nuclear weapons in the hands of a lunatic." Speaking at the White House event, Trump also reiterated his threat to Tehran, while acknowledging that negotiations were ongoing. 

In a press conference later, Trump reiterated his threat to destroy Iran's bridges and power plants if they failed to strike a deal. "We have a plan where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o'clock tomorrow night, where every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding, never to be used again," Trump said on Monday, however, adding that he does not want that to happen. "We don't want that to happen. We may even get involved with helping them rebuild their nation," Trump said, and claimed that he ordered the attack on the Karaj bridge after being informed that Tehran had refused the U.S. proposal. 

Iran, however, has shown no signs of agreeing to a ceasefire without guarantees about not being attacked again. While a successful deal would ease the pressure on oil and gas prices, negotiations are unlikely to take place without a ceasefire, as per a BBC report. As per the report, communication between officials in Tehran and Washington has also been slow. With his Tuesday deadline approaching, the President has continued to show optimism about a solution to the Iran conflict. However, with Iran’s official confirmation, it remains unclear whether an escalation will be initiated.