Trump says Iran is doing 'very poorly' but may not 'give up yet'

US President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday that Iran was faring badly in its war with the United States, while saying he could not tell whether Tehran was ready to concede. The Times of Israel reported that Trump said he did not know if Iran would "give up yet," and described the country as doing "very poorly." The Israeli news site Ynet carried a similar short alert in Hebrew, quoting Trump as saying Iran was in very bad shape and that he did not know whether it would yield.

The remarks came on September 29, 2026, as Trump spoke to the press after a meeting with senior executives from artificial intelligence companies, according to The Times of Israel. A photo caption published by The Jerusalem Post placed the exchange on the White House driveway following a luncheon for technology leaders in the East Room. The Hebrew news channel News.co.il reported that Trump also said the United States had, in recent days, moved more oil through the Strait of Hormuz than it had before the war.

Differing emphasis in the headlines

The reports do not frame Trump's words in exactly the same way. The Times of Israel, Ynet and News.co.il all describe him as uncertain about whether Iran will give up. The Jerusalem Post's headline, by contrast, says Trump stated that Iran "will give up," and adds that he compared Iran's nuclear ambitions with those of North Korea. The material available from The Jerusalem Post does not include the full text of that comparison, and it is not clear from the reports whether the two framings reflect different moments in the same conversation or different readings of one answer. We are reporting both without choosing between them.

Earlier comments on oil and the nuclear programme

A few hours before the evening reports, the Hebrew-language Telegram channel Abu Ali Express published what it presented as a statement from Trump. In its Hebrew rendering, Trump said history books would record the destruction of Iran's nuclear programme as one of the most significant achievements ever, that Iran was failing and in a very difficult position, and that the conflict would end very soon. He added, according to that account, that Iran would not obtain a nuclear weapon and that oil prices would fall back to where they had been. The channel framed the comments as Trump holding firm on Iran despite rising fuel prices. It did not specify where or how the statement was delivered, and it is possible these were separate remarks from the ones given to reporters later in the day.

Why the Strait of Hormuz matters

The Strait of Hormuz is the narrow sea passage linking the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, with Iran on its northern shore. A large share of the oil exported from Gulf producers passes through it, which is why fighting involving Iran tends to feed directly into global energy prices. Trump's reported claim that more oil was flowing through the strait than before the war appears aimed at that concern, alongside his prediction, as carried by Abu Ali Express, that prices would drop.

Who reported this

The Times of Israel and The Jerusalem Post are English-language Israeli news outlets. Ynet is the website of the Hebrew daily Yedioth Ahronoth and runs a rapid alerts channel. News.co.il and Abu Ali Express are Hebrew-language channels on Telegram, the messaging app widely used in Israel for breaking news. The same Times of Israel live blog noted other regional developments that day, including an Iranian warning to the United Arab Emirates after it hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports gives the question Trump was answering, or a full transcript of his remarks. They do not explain what "give up" would mean in practice, whether a surrender, a negotiated settlement or something else. The Jerusalem Post's comparison with North Korea is visible only in its headline, so its substance is unknown here. The oil claim reported by News.co.il is not accompanied by figures or a source, and none of the reports independently checks it. No response from Iran to these specific comments appears in the material.