"Leader of La France Insoumise, Jean-Luc Melenchon, accused US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of launching strikes on Iran to serve their own personal interests, speaking at a rally in Bondy on Wednesday. “They were discussing whether it was Mr Netanyahu or Mr Trump who had initiated the war [...] I think that both had, for specific reasons, common causes to go to war. And when I say specific causes, it is very material, very concrete,” Melenchon said. “These are struggles for domination by people who are in a state of weakness. Both are in a state of weakness. They personally are, Mr Trump, like Mr Netanyahu, having legal problems in their country,” he added. The French left-wing leader argued that Israel seeks to establish regional dominance in the Middle East and expand its influence further afield. "For Mr Netanyahu, eliminating an opponent, and therefore a very powerful opponent, and thus ensuring domination over the region. The whole region, not just the small area where he is located, the whole region, all the countries there, having with an eye on and targeting all of Africa, because the continent of the 21st century is going to be Africa," he said. Turning to the United States, Melenchon claimed Washington was attempting to provoke a confrontation with China by cutting off the Strait of Hormuz, which he said would disrupt the flow of Chinese goods to Europe and the United States. "What the United States of America is doing is waging war against China. They are doing it methodically because they cannot win against China economically," the French politician said. "Cutting off the route through the Strait of Hormuz means a considerable amount of oil will not reach China. And at the same time, it is a way to block the route of goods coming from China," added. The United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Saturday morning. Tehran said it responded with strikes on Israel and US-linked targets across the region, with explosions reported in several Gulf countries. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was confirmed killed in a strike on Saturday. The escalation follows several recent rounds of negotiations between the United States and Iran."