Iran’s armed forces have issued a response after US President Donald Trump delivered a primetime address warning he could attack the country and drive it ‘back to the Stone Age’.
Speaking on television on Wednesday night, Trump commented on the escalating situation only hours after saying Iran had sought a ceasefire — a claim Iranian officials have rejected.
On his Truth Social account, Trump wrote that Iran’s ‘new Regime president’ — whom he described as ‘much less radicalised and far more intelligent than his predecessors’ — had approached the US about halting the fighting.
He then added: “We will consider when [the] Hormuz Strait is open, free, and clear. Until then, we are blasting Iran into oblivion or, as they say, back to the Stone Ages.”
It remains uncertain who Trump was referring to in his post. He has said he is communicating with unnamed Iranian representatives, but Iranian authorities have denied that any talks are underway.
Iran’s foreign ministry later dismissed the ceasefire allegation as ‘false and baseless’ in remarks carried by state television.
Following Trump’s address, Iran’s military issued its own warning to the US and Israel, saying further “crushing” strikes would follow.
The statement read: “With trust in Almighty God, this war will continue until your humiliation, disgrace, permanent and certain regret, and surrender. Await our more crushing, broader, and more destructive actions.”
Meanwhile, the US has advised American citizens to leave Iraq, after previous guidance from the Department of State placed multiple countries under a Level 4 warning as tensions intensified.
In his televised remarks, Trump repeated earlier claims, including commendations for US service members and his position that Iran must not be allowed to obtain nuclear weapons.
He also argued the United States is not dependent on oil shipments passing through the Strait of Hormuz, adding that other nations should shoulder the task of getting the route reopened.
Although he stopped short of giving a definitive end point for what he called Operation Epic Fury, Trump said its ‘core objectives’ were ‘near completion’. He suggested the campaign could run for ‘two to three weeks’, and warned the US would hit Iran ‘extremely hard’ during that window.
Trump also defended the decision to enter the conflict, calling Iran a ‘murderous regime’ that ‘should have been handled long before I arrived in office’.
As he wrapped up his address, he said the US ‘holds all the cards’ and argued that while he didn’t have to strike Iran, he chose to do so in the interests of American and global security.
He added that he had not intended to pursue regime change or present the action as a liberation effort, but claimed it occurred incidentally after the US killed Iran’s leaders in a targeted bomb strike.