Trump issues fresh threat to Iran after funeral controversy

US President Donald Trump issued a fresh warning to Iran amid escalating tensions over the Strait of Hormuz. The remarks came after US demands for assurances on maritime safety and followed renewed military exchanges between Washington and Tehran.

Dubai: US President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened Iran after the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei reportedly saw open calls for his killing, further highlighting tensions gripping the Middle East as an interim deal to end the conflict comes under strain amid repeated hostilities in the region.

Trump made the remarks on his Truth Social platform after senior US officials demanded that Iran make a public statement assuring that the Strait of Hormuz remains open and that ships passing through the vital waterway would no longer be attacked.

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So far, Tehran has not done so. Instead, it has insisted that the route remain under its control and that it be allowed to levy charges on ships passing through it, challenging decades of precedent that treated the strait as an international waterway.

The developments came after several days of US airstrikes targeting Iran and Iranian retaliatory strikes targeting countries across the Middle East. The exchange of attacks followed Iran’s alleged attack on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this week.

“1000 Missiles are Locked and Loaded and aimed at the Islamic Republic of Iran, with thousands more to immediately follow, should the Iranian Government act on its threat,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump added that the US military would “completely decimate and destroy all areas of Iran – PRAISE BE TO ALLAH!”