‘This Is Punitive!’ Jake Sullivan Warns a Trump Attack on Iran’s Power Plants ‘Would Be’ a War Crime

Former Biden White House National Security adviser Jake Sullivan warned that it “would” amount to war crimes if President Donald Trump carries out his threats to strike Iranian power plants.

In posts to Truth Social on Sunday, Trump renewed his threat to target key Iranian infrastructure, bridges, and power plants, if the Strait of Hormuz waterway, a critical artery for global energy supplies, remains closed by Tuesday night in a deadline set after a profane warning directed at Tehran.

Speaking again on Monday, the president outlined what he described as a comprehensive military plan for “complete demolition” within hours of the deadline passing.

Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough asked Sullivan on Tuesday about the legality of the proposed strikes: “What he’s talking about, if we go after civilian infrastructure the way he’s promising to go after [it], by the most basic reading of the rules of international law, would those be war crimes the United States was committing?”

“The way this is set up? The answer to that question is straightforward. It’s yes, they would be, because this is punitive,” Sullivan replied.

The former national security adviser continued: “He’s not going after a power plant because it’s a pure military target that’s fueling the war machine against the United States, he’s going against those power plants to punish Iran and punish the Iranian people, to try to make them basically quit.”

Co-host Jonthan Lemire noted that the Pentagon could counter that some infrastructure may be considered a legitimate military objective if it serves a dual-use function.

However, Trump’s suggestion of widespread and “complete demolition” of Iran’s power network has intensified concerns among pundits about compliance with international law.

Under international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions, objects essential to civilian survival, such as power grids and water treatment facilities, are generally protected from attack.

Watch above via MS NOW.

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