President Trump tweeted Sunday that military engagement with the U.S. would mean “the official end of Iran” amid rising tensions between the two nations.
In recent weeks, the U.S. has deployed a carrier strike group to the Persian Gulf in response to what national security adviser John Bolton said were aggressive moves by Iran in the region.
{mosads}On Wednesday, the State Department pulled all nonemergency personnel from Iraq, citing possible threats from sectarian militias with ties to Iran.
Meanwhile, Iran has announced it will back out of some of its commitments under the 2015 nuclear deal, while the U.S. has designated Iran’s Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization, the first time the designation has been applied to a governmental entity. In response, Iran applied the same designation to U.S. troops in the Middle East.
This weekend, a Saudi official warned that the nation would defend itself “with all force and determination” in the wake of attacks on four oil tankers, two of which were Saudi, near the coast of the United Arab Emirates and an attack on a Saudi pipeline, for which Tehran-allied Yemeni rebels took credit.
Lawmakers have increasingly accused the administration of leaving them in the dark on the situation with Iran, with Democrats in particular demanding briefings on the issue.
Trump has used similar rhetoric against North Korea and leader Kim Jong Un, saying in August 2017 that North Korea “best not make any more threats to the United States” or the nation would be “met with fire and fury like the world has never seen.”
Asked Thursday about the possibility of war with Iran, Trump responded, “I hope not.”