US President Donald Trump on Wednesday hinted that he was considering stronger attacks against Iran amid the chaos in the Gulf.
He also indirectly criticised US allies for rejecting or ignoring his Monday offer to jointly send warships to escort tankers through the embattled Hormuz Strait.
Trump is now mulling "finishing off what’s left" of Iran to let the "non-responsive" allies share control of the Hormuz Strait, and whether the idea would spur them to get onboard his Monday plan.
"I wonder what would happen if we “finished off” what’s left of the Iranian Terror State, and let the Countries that use it, we don’t, be responsible for the so called “Straight (Strait)?” he wrote in a Truth Social post.
This is one in a series of veiled potshots he has taken at US allies since they rejected the Monday offer.
In another post on Wednesday, he also urged them to "get a grip", citing an opinion column in the media.
"Remember, for all of those absolute “fools” out there, Iran is considered, by everyone, to be the NUMBER ONE STATE SPONSOR OF TERROR. We are rapidly putting them out of business!" he wrote in a third post.
This comes amid a number of developments in the war between Iran and US-Israel forces. Here are five important updates:
1) Israel's defence minister Israel Katz on Wednesday confirmed that an overnight precision strike in Tehran had killed Iran’s intelligence minister, Esmail Khatib. This comes just 48 hours after the deaths of security chief Ali Larijani and Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani.
2) At least two died and dozens have been injured in fierce Iranian retaliation—using cluster warheads—on Israel, especially on Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan, since the deaths of Larijani, Khatib, and Soleimani, an Associated Press report said.
3) An airstrike was confirmed just outside the Al Minhad airbase in the UAE, causing a fire and minor damage to a medical facility used by Australian forces. Saudi Arabian air defences also intercepted a ballistic missile over Al Kharj, near Riyadh.
4) Iran has indicated that the "special conditions" that it has imposed on the Hormuz Strait continues, with access granted to only certain vessels from friendly nations, on a permission basis.
5) At least eight people were killed in an airstrike on a courthouse complex in Iran’s Larestan County on Wednesday, Iran’s official judiciary news agency Mizan said. This allegedly includes one lawyer, six clients, and a member of the judicial staff.
