Iran warns of ‘severe’ response in wake of Trump’s new strikes threat

US president says helium would backmost attacks if Tehran rebuilds atomic oregon rocket programmes.

Iran has promised to respond harshly to immoderate aggression aft United States President Donald Trump threatened further subject action, should Tehran effort to rebuild its atomic programme oregon rocket capabilities.

President Masoud Pezeshkian issued the informing connected X connected Tuesday, a time aft Trump met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu astatine his Florida estate, wherever helium firmly leaned into the Israeli determination communicative yet again.

The US had not antecedently said it would people Iran’s rocket capabilities, which has agelong been an Israeli aspiration, focusing alternatively connected Tehran’s atomic programme. Iran has repeatedly said its atomic activities are for civilian purposes only, and neither US quality nor the UN’s atomic watchdog recovered immoderate grounds of atomic weapons accumulation earlier the June attacks by the US and Israel.

Iran has ruled retired negotiating implicit its rocket programme.

The leaders’ comments rise the spectre of renewed struggle conscionable months aft a devastating 12-day warfare successful June that killed much than 1,100 Iranians and near 28 successful Israel dead.

Pezeshkian said the effect of Iran to immoderate aggression would beryllium “severe and regret-inducing”. His defiant connection came hours aft Trump told reporters astatine his Mar-a-Lago edifice that Washington could transportation retired different large battle connected Iran.

“Now I perceive that Iran is trying to physique up again, and if they are, we’re going to person to sound them down,” Trump said, lasting alongside Netanyahu. “We’ll sound the hellhole retired of them.”

The US president said helium would enactment strikes connected Iran’s atomic programme “immediately” and connected its rocket facilities if Tehran continues processing long-range weapons.

Israeli officials person expressed interest successful caller weeks that Iran is softly rebuilding its ballistic rocket stockpile, which was importantly depleted during the June conflict.

“If the Americans bash not scope an statement with the Iranians that halts their ballistic rocket program, it whitethorn beryllium indispensable to face Tehran,” an Israeli authoritative told Ynet this week.

Pezeshkian precocious described the standoff arsenic a “full-scale war” with the US, Israel and Europe that is “more analyzable and much difficult” than Iran’s bloody struggle with Iraq successful the 1980s, which near much than 1 cardinal dead.

The June warfare saw Israel motorboat astir 360 strikes crossed 27 Iranian provinces implicit 12 days, according to struggle monitoring radical ACLED, targeting subject installations, atomic facilities and authorities buildings.

The battle destroyed an estimated 1,000 Iranian ballistic missiles and killed much than 30 elder subject commanders and astatine slightest 11 atomic scientists.

Iran fired much than 500 missiles astatine Israel during the conflict, with astir 36 landing successful populated areas. While Trump claimed Iranian atomic capabilities were “completely obliterated” by the strikes, experts disputed that, saying Tehran whitethorn person hidden stockpiles of enriched uranium and could resume accumulation wrong months.

Despite the losses, Iranian officials importune the state is present amended prepared for confrontation. In a caller interview, Pezeshkian said Iran’s subject forces are “stronger successful presumption of instrumentality and manpower” than earlier the ceasefire.

The warfare failed to trigger the interior unrest it is suspected that Netanyahu had hoped for. No important protests materialised, and regular beingness successful Tehran mostly continued contempt the bombardment.