Iran responded this Sunday (1st) to threats made by the President of the United States, Donald Trump. In statements made this Saturday (31), he did not rule out new attacks on the country to neutralize military targets, such as Kolang Mountain, suspected of housing an underground nuclear complex.
“A new war could last longer than the previous one,” said Iranian Army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia, after Trump said he would resolve the issue in “ten minutes.”
According to Tehran, the American president “would not be in a position to dictate either the moment or the conditions” for the end of the conflict.
Located near the Natanz uranium enrichment facility, about 250 kilometers south of the Iranian capital, Pickaxe Mountain, called Kooh Kolang by Iranians, is suspected of housing an underground nuclear complex, according to US intelligence services. Trump had already threatened to bomb it at the end of July.
The Iranian government rejects the accusations and also denies seeking to develop nuclear weapons, defending its right to the civilian use of atomic energy. Last week, Trump mentioned a “new small Epic Fury”, in reference to the military offensive launched by Washington on February 28 against the Islamic Republic.
The attack killed several Iranian leaders, including Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, and left thousands of civilians dead during almost 40 days of bombings conducted by Israel and the United States. In April, Iran and the United States reached a ceasefire agreement that ended the fighting. On June 12, the two countries signed a protocol of understanding to end the conflict.
The attacks, however, resumed, and Iran once again targeted Washington's allies in the region, from the Gulf to Jordan. Since the beginning of September, the situation in the region has been stable, but the possibility of a short and intense military campaign after the mid-term legislative elections in the United States, scheduled for Tuesday, has not been ruled out.
Israel threatens Iran again After the legislative elections held this week in Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also spoke of a “unique historic opportunity” to “definitively eliminate the existential threat” posed by Iran, considered the country's main enemy.
Faced with these threats, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who succeeded his father in March, stated on Saturday that there could be “an immediate, powerful response without geographical limits”.
The ayatollah, who has not appeared in public since his appointment, also ordered military authorities to update the target list to include “all types of material and immaterial assets belonging to the American-Zionist enemy.”
Iran has already threatened to attack data centers, artificial intelligence systems and submarine cables in the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a main focus of tensions.
Qatar-mediated negotiations continue, and Iran praised the “change in tone” demonstrated in a letter sent by American Vice President JD Vance. The UAE said it hoped for a diplomatic solution.
"It is not in the region's interest to experience a new cycle of confrontation. But, as we have shown in the past, we are also prepared to face the worst," said Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to the president of the Emirates, during a conference in Manama, capital of Bahrain.
