Trump says US will hit Iran hard again today; Tehran vows to retaliate
US President Donald Trump warned Tehran would have to pay the price for taking too long to agree a deal and said fresh airstrikes are planned for today. Iran's presidency said it would retaliate against any attack.
The BBC reported that President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that "Iran has been dragging it out for too long and will pay the price today". Trump said the Pentagon and White House Situation Room had approved a fresh target list overnight. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the list covers military targets outside Iran's nuclear infrastructure.
Iranian presidential spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani told a press briefing in Tehran that "any attack on our people will not go unanswered". Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force, said the alert status for a possible counterstrike on US bases had been raised. Diplomatic missions in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE moved to emergency protocols.
BBC Beirut correspondent Hugo Bachega reported that the US and UK no-fly zone over Lebanon has been raised from 12,000 to 30,000 feet. Germany, Greece and Sweden have begun civilian evacuation flights for their nationals from Iraq and Lebanon. Brent crude rose 1.9% on the day. (Not investment advice.)
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