President Donald Trump issued a stark warning to Tehran, threatening to 'completely decimate and destroy all areas of Iran' should there be an assassination attempt against him. The threat came a day after he agreed to continue talks with Iran, though he reiterated that a previous ceasefire agreement was over.
The escalation follows weeks of rising tensions. Mourners at a funeral for former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei displayed signs calling for the deaths of Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Trump responded by stating that '1,000 missiles are locked and loaded' against Iran.
The backdrop is a provisional June memorandum of understanding that called for a cessation of hostilities. The US would lift its naval blockade, and Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and refrain from developing nuclear weapons. However, a series of retaliatory military strikes this week has undermined those efforts.
US Central Command announced strikes against 170 Iranian military targets over two days, aiming to degrade Iran's ability to attack commercial shipping in the critical Strait of Hormuz. Iran responded by attacking US bases in Bahrain and Kuwait.
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused the US of violating the agreement by imposing new sanctions, insisting Iran had 'kept its word.' A British maritime agency reported multiple strikes on tankers in the Strait, and Qatar blamed Iran for an attack on one of its vessels, holding Tehran 'fully legally responsible.'