Iran threatens to ‘rain down hell’ if US escalates war

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has warned that Tehran will “rain down hell” if the United States resumes attacks, serving Washington with an ultimatum in an attempt to end the two countries’ eight-month war.

“Our 2-day proposal stands: meet the requirements, including end to war on all fronts, and you will see results,” Araghchi wrote in a post on X on Sunday.

“Or choose war, and see our alert and battle-hardened warriors rain down hell,” he said.

US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that renewed strikes on Iran are “highly unlikely” if negotiations progress over Tehran’s nuclear programme and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

“It depends on whether or not they sign a very strong agreement,” Trump said when asked about continued US strikes on Iran during a phone interview reported by CNN. “I would [continue], if necessary, but we hit them really hard,” he added.

Trump warned that US forces have three aircraft carriers stationed in the region “fully locked and loaded”, ready to continue strikes if need be. He also said that the US has 38 bridges in Iran’s crosshairs that US forces “can knock down in literally one hour”.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry also quoted Araghchi in an earlier statement on Sunday that said Iran would “not go easy on American targets” in the region.

Araghchi’s statements came after reports by state media that an oil tanker caught fire earlier that morning after hitting a naval mine east of the Strait of Hormuz, citing Iran’s navy.

The navy claimed the ship’s identification systems were turned off and it was travelling in the no-go zone of the strait.

An adviser to Iran’s commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Aerospace Force made threats that echoed those of the Iranian foreign minister and said that weapons have been “secured for years to come”.

“The armed forces are at the ready, and if the enemy makes a mistake, Iran’s response will be devastating and severe,” warned IRGC Brigadier-General Ali Belali in a statement on Telegram.

“As senior commanders of the armed forces have pointed out, we have upgraded our capabilities in the post-Ramadan War period,” Belali said.

The back-and-fourth between Iranian and US leaders comes following US midterm elections in which the Democratic Party won control of both chambers of Congress, soundly defeating Trump’s Republican Party.

Araghchi alleged that negotiations have been delayed as a result of the elections, but he awaits the path forward, Iranian state media reported.

“It will take some time for things to settle down and for the atmosphere to become conducive to the mediators resuming their visits,” the foreign minister said. “We have to wait.”