Iran says won’t allow US warships to get close as Trump ponders new attacks

Key points

• Iran's armed forces say they are prepared to fire on US warships and that the US Navy cannot re-enter the Persian Gulf.
• Trump said the US may launch another bombing campaign, "Epic Fury," or keep pressure on Iran through a naval blockade and sanctions.
• Regional and European powers met in Istanbul and warned that a new attack on Iran would widen the war.

Iran's armed forces said they are ready to fire on United States warships, as President Donald Trump said Washington was still weighing new attacks or continued pressure on Iran. Trump told supporters in Florida on Friday that the US military "may do another Epic Fury," referring to the bombing campaign at the start of the war. He had earlier considered ending the conflict quickly through heavy strikes on Iran or letting pressure from a naval blockade and sanctions persist.

Ali Abdollahi, chief of general staff of the Iranian armed forces, said the US Navy cannot re-enter Iran's territorial waters or its periphery because Iran can target any vessel in the region. In a statement carried by state media on Saturday morning, he said the US president "can only dream" of soldiers entering the Persian Gulf. Abdollahi said US claims that Iran's military capabilities were mostly destroyed contradict its refusal to bring aircraft carriers and support vessels closer to Iranian territory.

Attacks and oil prices

Vessels in and around the Strait of Hormuz continue to be attacked by Iran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said seven tankers were attacked or hit mines overnight into Thursday, then claimed on Friday that two supertankers struck mines. The IRGC said its military doctrine is now more offensive, and Washington has reportedly ordered many diplomatic personnel to leave Saudi Arabia.

The attacks and the increased odds of renewed war have driven up oil prices, sending Brent crude to about $117, its highest since April. In Yemen, the Iran-allied Houthis continued exchanging attacks with Saudi Arabia, hitting Riyadh again on Saturday. In southern Lebanon, Friday brought further reported Israeli air attacks around Nabatieh and artillery fire near Zawtar ash-Sharqiyah.

The US president can only dream of their soldiers and military again entering the Persian Gulf. They will take this wish to the grave for good.

— Ali Abdollahi

Diplomatic efforts in Istanbul

Mediated negotiations between Iran and the US are no closer to yielding results. Top diplomats from Turkiye, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Egypt met with the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy in Istanbul on Friday, without the US or Iran taking part. Turkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said after the meeting that a new attack on Iran would widen the war and that military intervention is "by no means a solution."

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said his government held Iran and the Houthis responsible for instability in the Middle East. The four regional countries issued a joint statement saying "Israeli occupation was the main source of instability in the region and beyond." They supported the Islamabad memorandum of understanding signed in June and a negotiated settlement, and demanded unrestricted passage through the Strait of Hormuz.