Trump Threatens New Strikes on Iran, US Warns Citizens in 10 Countries
The American president said attacks will continue until Tehran agrees to serious negotiations, as tensions rise in the region following incidents with tankers and drones.
The American president said attacks will continue until Tehran agrees to serious negotiations, as tensions rise in the region following incidents with tankers and drones.
US President Donald Trump threatened new military strikes on Iran on Friday, saying the United States will continue attacks until Tehran sits down at the negotiating table in a manner Washington deems serious. Meanwhile, the State Department issued security alerts for ten Middle Eastern countries, and US embassies urged their citizens to consider leaving the region.
Speaking to reporters during a meeting with administration officials at the presidential retreat Camp David in Maryland, Trump made clear that military action will not stop anytime soon. "We will hit Iran very hard, until they can no longer take it," Trump said, adding that the US "just wants to win" in this conflict, as reported by N1 BiH.
A few hours later, White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt spoke out, accusing Tehran of violating the ceasefire memorandum signed last month. "Iran has broken the deal, attacked commercial ships, and killed American soldiers. President Trump will not stand by and allow such terrorist behavior," Leavitt stated in a release.
Due to the deteriorating security situation, the US State Department issued alerts for Bahrain, Israel, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Statements from US missions in Amman, Jerusalem, and Baghdad say that "Americans in the region should consider leaving or be prepared to leave if escalation occurs," as reported by Hindustan Times, citing AFP.
Citizens are advised to exercise increased caution, monitor developments, and are warned of possible flight cancellations, temporary airspace closures, and potential travel disruptions, according to France Info.
On Saturday, two incidents involving tankers were recorded off the coast of Oman. The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that the first tanker was hit by an unidentified projectile about 11 nautical miles northeast of the Omani town of Lima, damaging the engine room. The second incident was reported 21 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, where the tanker's captain saw a large splash and an explosion in the immediate vicinity of the vessel.
Meanwhile, Kuwait announced that its air defense intercepted Iranian drones aimed at vital facilities. Kuwaiti Ministry of Defense spokesperson, Major General Saud Abdulaziz Al-Otaibi, confirmed that the drones targeted "several vital facilities, including a government structure in the north of the country," but there were no casualties.
Additional tensions come from Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Houthi military spokesperson, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, said on Friday that eight Saudi ships were forced to reroute from the Bab el-Mandeb Strait towards the Cape of Good Hope in Africa to avoid a blockade, as reported by Hindustan Times.
Chief of Iran's Central Military Command, Ali Abdollahi, accused the US of escalating tensions. "The United States is quickly moving towards escalating tensions in the region," Abdollahi said, warning that "any country that serves as a defensive shield for criminal and aggressive America will be engulfed in the flames of war," as reported by Hindustan Times.
A senior Iranian security official told the Tasnim agency that Iran has prepared a "comprehensive plan to respond to possible American madness," which includes targeting Israel's vital infrastructure and US energy infrastructure in the region. Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that "Iran has won the war against the US and Israel, but we must consolidate that victory." Ghalibaf also called on Iranian authorities to "expand and strengthen the executive power of the Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, because any attempt to build a strong Iran will start from here," as reported by ANSA, citing the Fars agency.
According to CNN, there are no indications that Israel will participate in US strikes on Iran, while CBS claims that the US and Israel are jointly planning a bombing campaign against Iranian energy infrastructure. ABC News reports that the strikes were discussed with Israeli officials, but it is unclear whether Israel will be directly involved, as reported by ANSA.
