ATLANTA — Tensions are escalating in the Middle East as reports confirm new attacks this morning on Iran’s Fordow nuclear site, one of the country’s key nuclear facilities and a target of U.S. airstrikes over the weekend. Israel also launched additional assaults on government sites in Tehran.
The U.S. strikes have drawn swift reactions from Georgia’s political leaders.
Governor Brian Kemp, speaking on Atlanta’s Morning News, defended the action as a necessary move to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.
“This was not an action of war, it was an action of defense in my opinion, to keep Iran from getting a nuclear weapon,” Kemp said. “That has been a stated goal of this president, and a lot of other administrations have talked about it but nobody has ever done anything about it.”
State Insurance Commissioner and U.S. Senate candidate John King echoed support for the administration, saying he was “grateful that we had a commander in chief who leads with strength, clarity, and when necessary, decisive actions.”
But not all leaders were in agreement. Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene opposed the strikes, stating, “This is not our fight. We need peace.”
Democratic Representative Nikema Williams issued a statement calling the move “unconstitutional,” while Senator Raphael Warnock added, “This is not the art of the deal, this is war.”
Back in Atlanta, dozens of protesters gathered near Centennial Olympic Park to voice opposition to the strikes. Activist Miles Weatherington criticized the administration’s intentions, claiming,
“They want a regime change. They want to topple the government of Iran, and this is their pretext for it, the same as it was against the government in Iraq with the weapons of mass destruction.”
President Trump is scheduled to meet with his national security advisors this afternoon to discuss the path forward following the weekend attacks.
WSB’s Ashley Simmons contributed to this story
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