Iran has promised 'crushing' strikes against the US and Israel, just hours after Donald Trump claimed America was 'nearing completion' of its goals in the region.
Last night (early morning UK time), Trump addressed Americans for the first time since he joined Israel in launching a major military operation in Iran.
During the 20-minute speech, the US leader claimed his forces were close to achieving their 'core strategic objectives' and suggested the Iranian navy and ballistic missile stores had been completely 'decimated'.
Trump went on to add that Iran would be hit 'extremely hard' in the next couple of weeks to finish the job, but declined to give an exact end date for the war.
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Iran has now responded to the speech, vowing to carry out 'crushing' strikes against US-Israeli interests.
In a statement issued by the Iranian military this morning (2 April), a spokesperson vowed to humiliate its enemies.
"With trust in Almighty God, this war will continue until your humiliation, disgrace, permanent and certain regret, and surrender," a spokesperson for the Iranian military said in a statement shared on state TV.
"Await our more crushing, broader, and more destructive actions."
The spokesperson also rejected claims that Iran's military and missile stores had been depleted, adding that the nation's production 'takes place in places that you do not know at all'.
Iran has also threatened attacks on broader American interests in the region, with the US warning its citizens to leave Iraq amid threats of Iranian-backed militias planning to attack Baghdad 'within the next 24 to 48 hours'.
"These actors may target US citizens, companies, universities, diplomatic facilities, energy infrastructure, hotels, airports, and other sites believed to be associated with the United States," the US embassy in Iraq said.
The response comes as Trump threatened to bomb the Middle Eastern nation back into the 'Stone Age' should they refuse to engage in a deal to end the war.
"If there is no deal, we are going to hit each and every one of their electric generating plants very hard, and probably simultaneously," he added.
This isn't the first time that Trump has threatened to target Iranian energy infrastructure, with the US leader previously announcing that he would attack power grids if Iran did not end its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz, which is responsible for the passage of 20 percent of the world's liquified natural gas and 25 percent of all seaborne oil trade, remains closed to the US, Israel and its allies.
The closure has caused a massive knock-on effect across the world economy, seeing spikes in oil prices and a brewing jet fuel crisis.
Topics: Donald Trump, US News, Iran, Politics
Brenna Cooper