‘Better not do it’: Trump warns Iran against attack, vows to use ‘unprecedented force’

Trump said in a social media post that reports that Iran planned a “very harsh” response were being closely watched, but warned: “They better not do it, though, because if they do, we will hit them with force like never before!” track Real-time updates on the US-Iran conflict

Trump’s warning comes as Iranian officials have warned they intend to respond to previous attacks with force. The U.S. president has repeatedly justified U.S. military action as necessary to “defend the American people” and eliminate what his administration calls an imminent threat from Iran’s missile and nuclear programs.

In recent remarks after the United States launched “Operation Epic Fury” on Saturday, Trump also directed members of Iran’s security forces to lay down their weapons or face “certain death,” while urging the Iranian people to rise up and “take over your government” once hostilities subside.

The tensions follow major joint military operations by the United States and Israel, including “significant combat operations” in Iran and resulting in the deaths of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and a number of senior leaders in Tehran.

The attacks triggered explosions and alarms in several Gulf states, with reports of explosions in Dubai, Doha and Manama as air defense systems responded to the incoming threat.

A statement from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said that the U.S. naval base in the Abdullah Mubarak region of Kuwait was attacked by four ballistic missiles and 12 drones, destroying all infrastructure and causing heavy casualties to U.S. military personnel.

The statement also stated that an MST-class combat support ship transporting fuel to US ships in the Indian Ocean was attacked by an Iranian Qadr 380 missile.

Tehran’s military described the latest operation as one of its most intense offensives to date, with multiple bases and strategic targets under attack.