Iran has warned the United States and its regional allies against launching a major new attack, saying Tehran has intelligence that preparations for another escalation may already be under way.
Iran’s military central command said on Sunday that any fresh assault would trigger sustained retaliation against US bases and interests across the region. It also warned that countries assisting Washington would be treated as parties to the conflict. Iran did not disclose evidence supporting its claim that a new attack was being prepared.
The warning comes as tensions surge across the Middle East following a new wave of missile and drone attacks claimed by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis against Saudi Arabia.
The US State Department has meanwhile issued a regional security alert warning of the possibility of “unforeseen escalation” and advising Americans to remain vigilant for possible flight cancellations and airspace closures.
Houthi attacks widen regional crisis
The Houthis said they struck targets in the Saudi capital Riyadh and a major oil facility in the Red Sea port of Yanbu on Saturday.
Reuters footage showed a large plume of black smoke rising near Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport after explosions were heard in the capital. Saudi Arabia has not publicly confirmed the Houthi claims, although the Saudi-led coalition said it had intercepted other attacks against the kingdom.
The renewed attacks have added another volatile front to a conflict already stretching across the Gulf, Iran, Yemen and crucial international shipping routes.
Recent Houthi advances along Yemen’s Red Sea coastline have placed their forces around the strategically vital Bab el-Mandeb Strait, one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and wider Asian shipping routes.
Iran has meanwhile maintained severe restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, while US measures targeting Iranian ports have sharply constrained Tehran’s ability to export oil.
The combination has placed further pressure on global energy markets, with two of the Middle East’s most strategically important maritime corridors caught up in the conflict.
No sign of ceasefire revival
Nearly seven months into the US-Iran war, neither side has shown signs of making the concessions needed for a lasting settlement.
An interim ceasefire reached in June collapsed the following month amid disputes over its implementation, and there has so far been little indication that the agreement can be revived.
Iran reiterated on Sunday that it would not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz until Washington fulfilled commitments Tehran says were contained in the June agreement.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said Tehran intended to pursue military pressure and negotiations simultaneously, arguing that Iran should continue fighting while using diplomacy to consolidate gains.
His remarks, coupled with the military’s warning of sustained retaliation against US forces and regional partners, underscored the danger of another major escalation as fighting spreads across an increasingly interconnected Middle Eastern battlefield.
