President Donald Trump just announced that he'll deliver his decision Tuesday on whether to withdraw the United States from the Iran nuclear deal.
According to Trita Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council (NIAC), "If he kills it--as most expect he will do--he will put the U.S. on a path towards war with Iran. Period."
Trump's announcement follows Iranian President Hassan Rouhani's warning that the U.S. would face "historic regret" if it exits the deal, and his hinting that Iran could remain committed to the pact even if that happens.
Despite the Trump administration's repeated bashing of the deal--as well as efforts by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discredit Iran's adherance to the deal--the American public strongly backs it, and other signatories to the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)--Germany, France, and the U.K.--are urging Trump not to withdraw.
The announcement of Trump's decision, which would be ahead of his May 12 deadline to either issue a new waiver to suspend Iran sanctions or nix the deal, comes on the heels of reports that Trump aides hired a private Israeli surveillance agency to dig up dirt on officials in the Obama administration in an effort to discredit the nuclear deal.
That smear campaign, first reported by the Observer, also extended to prominent Iranian Americans, including NIAC's Parsi.
In a Twitter thread, Parsi said the effort fit "a long-standing pattern in which proponents of war have engaged in extensive efforts to discredit and silence voices in favor of a diplomatic solution with Iran."