Democratic Senator Murphy: Trump was “unprepared” for the war with Iran

U.S. Democratic Senator Chris Murphy has sharply criticised President Donald Trump over his handling of the war with Iran, calling him “unprepared” for the conflict, which is entering its eighth month. The comments came after Murphy personally saw the damage at the U.S. embassy in Riyadh, as Al Jazeera reports in its live blog.

In a video posted on his X account, Murphy said: “Today I personally saw the damage done to the U.S. embassy in Riyadh,” adding: “More proof of how unprepared Trump was for this war and how unprotected he left thousands of Americans in this region.”

Murphy is on a tour of U.S. allies in the Middle East. His first stop was Qatar on 3 October, where officials advised him to press for a diplomatic solution to the war with Iran, according to U.S. media reports.

The criticism comes as the war escalates in Yemen, with Yemeni government forces launching a major counteroffensive against the Iran-backed Houthis, while Turkey and Pakistan have agreed to deploy forces to Saudi Arabia.