The Islamic Republic of Iran Army warned on Sunday that the war could widen further if the United States decides to resume its military campaign against the Islamic Republic.
“I believe that if the Americans once again fall for the Zionists’ deception, or move in line with them, and insist on continuing the war, particularly through airstrikes, geographically this will expand further,” army spokesman Brig. Gen. Mohammad Akraminia said, according to Tehran’s Press TV outlet.
Akraminia noted that the regime’s Houthi terrorist proxy had already brought the conflict to the Bab el-Mandab strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
“The scope of our operations now encompasses the entire region, from U.S. bases in Jordan to the countries along the Persian Gulf,” he said.
Akraminia said the situation in the Middle East for the United States was “difficult and unsettled,” claiming Washington was now looking “for a new strategy.
“We are prepared for each of the options and scenarios that appear likely,” he declared.
In a separate statement cited by the state-run IRNA outlet, a spokesperson for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps threatened Israel, the United Kingdom and the Gulf states.
IRGC Brig. Gen. Hossein Mohebbi said American B-1 bombers had recently used British airbases, warning that the U.K. would become a “definite and legitimate target” if it continued to support Washington.
“Israel knows what will happen to it if it returns to war and we focus on it,” he said.
The United States military did not carry out airstrikes against Iran on Friday or Saturday, marking the first pause in its bombing campaign in two weeks.
Washington offered no immediate explanation as to why it halted 13 consecutive nights of strikes, which it launched after an interim deal collapsed over Iranian attacks on merchant ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. President Donald Trump had said on Friday that he was ready to launch a “higher level” of attacks against Iran, as the two countries continued negotiations.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said that U.S. forces were “locked and loaded” for those strikes.
The president said that he had two options available for an exit strategy from the conflict.
“There’s a military exit, where we just keep going just the way we are, and we can even make it a heavier dose, and it’s knocking out everything they have,” Trump said. “Or there’s a smarter strategy that you make a deal, and they want to make a deal. I just don’t think they’re ready yet.”
