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Bruce Pearl said President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have his full and unconditional support in their war against Iran.
“They have my support and my prayers, and I am grateful for their bravery,” the legendary former Auburn men’s basketball coach told Pak Gazette Digital.
As the US and Israeli militaries continue to carry out a joint operation against Iran after eliminating the Ayatollah’s chief, Pearl admits she has concerns about what comes next, especially when it comes to potential US and Israeli casualties.
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Former Auburn Tigers men’s basketball coach Bruce Pearl walks on the field before the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. (Troy Taormina/Imagn Images)
Pearl has several friends and family in Israel as Iran carries out its counterattack, and six US service members have already been confirmed dead since the violence began.
Pearl blamed former presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden for agreeing to deals that resulted in finances going to Iran for more than the last decade.
“I think President Obama meant well, but his decision was costly and wrong,” Pearl said. “He financed the terrorists who rebuilt Hezbollah, who rebuilt Hamas, who rebuilt the Houthis. The US government is responsible in part for funding Iran’s war and terror.
“President Trump doesn’t want war, but he’s also not going to look the other way and let Iran terrorize the Middle East, which they did. And then what does President Biden do? He comes in and reverses all the policies that President Trump enacted, and goes back to repaying Iran and treating it like a normal country. And all they did was repay the terrorists and rebuild their weapons.”
The Obama administration transferred $1.7 billion in cash to Iran in 2016 to resolve a 1979 arms dispute, while the Biden administration released between $10 billion and $16 billion in frozen Iranian oil funds as part of a 2023 prisoner swap and humanitarian trade. The funds were Iranian assets frozen abroad, but were not known to be U.S. taxpayer funds.
Pearl told Pak Gazette Digital that he is personally angry about Iranian aggression against the United States in recent decades.
“Iran is the world’s greatest enemy since Adolf Hitler. They have been this country’s number one enemy since 1979. They have killed more Americans than any other country in the world. So what I would say to the United States is that we did not start this war. Iran has declared war on us for a long, long time, and they have been killing our citizens,” Pearl said.
“They sponsored, financed, and gave the green light to Hamas to commit the atrocities of October 7. And 46 Americans died. Innocent Americans died that way at the hands of Hamas, which was part of Iran’s proxies. That makes me angry. That makes me angry. As an American. And I’m glad this president is doing something about it.”
Pearl, president of the Israel Education Association in the United States, recalled witnessing people close to him die due to violence in the Middle East.
“I know families of hostages who have lost their lives. I know Israeli friends who have lost sons and daughters. I have known Americans who have lost family members in Lebanon in 1982, in the barracks and also in the wars in Iraq,” he said.
Since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, Pearl says he has encountered pro-Palestinian protesters in the United States.
The pro-Palestinian movement in the United States has become one of the country’s largest and most sustained waves of protests, sparked by a foreign event in modern history.
Just two weeks after the initial Oct. 7 attack, the movement quickly expanded from the first vigils to 420 demonstrations in 46 states, according to Harvard University’s Ash Center. By November of that year, the burst of activity had solidified into a sustained national wave broader than any previous pro-Palestinian movement in American history, particularly on college campuses.
Now, as the United States and Israel wage a major war against Iran, which could potentially fan the flames of the pro-Palestinian movement in the United States, Pearl has a message for those protesters.
“If you want to protest, understand why you are protesting. I ask you the question: Are women free in Israel or are they free inside Gaza? In Israel they can go to education, university, school, live a normal, incredible life like any other human being, or are they subject to Sharia law? How can they protest that? Do they want to protest? Protest for the Iranian people fighting for their freedom,” Pearl said.
“How is it possible that on October 8, 9 or 10, a few days after 46 Americans were murdered and 1,200 people were murdered and 250 were taken hostage. How is it possible that university students protested to free Palestine from the river to the sea and supported Hamas? Free Palestine from the river to the sea is free Palestine from the Jews from the river to the sea. That means killing us or eliminating us.”
Many Americans have been trapped in Israel since the counterattacks began. This includes at least three American female basketball players.
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South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley has led a public effort to bring them home.
Pearl, who admitted he had not heard of those players’ plight, said that “when the airspace is safe, they will be able to return home.”
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