Photo: AP
Iran on Friday warned that it would regard any military strike against it as a full-scale act of war and would retaliate with maximum force, amid the deployment of a US aircraft carrier strike group and additional military assets to the Middle East.
A senior Iranian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the country’s armed forces had been placed on high alert and were preparing for what was described as a worst-case scenario. The official said Iran would not differentiate between the nature or scale of an attack, adding that any military action would be treated as an all-out war and met with the strongest possible response, according to Reuters.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States was sending what he described as an “armada” toward Iran, while expressing hope that military confrontation could still be avoided. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, he warned Iran against killing protesters or resuming its nuclear programme. He also issued a separate warning to Denmark over Greenland, indicating that refusals would carry consequences, AP reported.
The latest escalation comes in the wake of a violent crackdown on nationwide protests in Iran that began in late December. Human rights activists have reported that at least 5,032 people have been killed, though some organisations believe the actual number could be higher. Protest activity has reportedly slowed in recent days, partly due to a communications blackout imposed by Iranian authorities.
Iran’s chief prosecutor, Mohammad Movahedi, rejected repeated claims by Trump that Tehran had stopped the execution of 800 detained protesters. According to the Associated Press, which cited the judiciary’s Mizan news agency, Movahedi described those assertions as entirely false.
Analysts have said the growing US military presence could provide Trump with the option to launch strikes, even though he has so far refrained from doing so despite issuing multiple warnings.
Former US national security adviser Jake Sullivan reportedly observed that Trump’s confrontational approach toward allies could end up bolstering China’s strategic influence, TNIE reported.
Trump’s rhetoric has also drawn criticism from several world leaders. In the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Keir Starmer criticised Trump’s remarks about NATO, describing them as offensive and dismissive of the sacrifices made by allies such as Britain in Afghanistan. In Canada, Governor Mark Carney called on middle powers to work collectively to counter unilateral actions by the United States, a stance that reportedly led Trump to withdraw Carney’s invitation to his Board of Peace.
Observers have warned that the escalating rhetoric and military manoeuvres have heightened the risk of miscalculation as tensions between Washington and Tehran continue to rise.
US military officials have confirmed that the aircraft carrier USS *Abraham Lincoln*, along with accompanying warships, is en route to the Middle East from the South China Sea. Separately, the UK Ministry of Defence said its joint Eurofighter Typhoon squadron with Qatar, known as 12 Squadron, had been deployed to the Persian Gulf for defensive purposes in view of regional tensions.