Washington has warned that fresh air strikes against Iran could happen as early as Sunday while maintaining that a diplomatic settlement is still possible. President Donald Trump stressed his primary goal is to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, balancing military threats with offers of economic peace. In response, Iranian forces have entered a state of high combat readiness, threatening severe retaliation and targeting capabilities across the region. The ongoing confrontation has severely disrupted maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, driving global oil prices to significant new highs and expanding conflicts across multiple Middle Eastern fronts.

Washington has warned that fresh air strikes against Iran could happen as early as Sunday while maintaining that a diplomatic settlement is still possible. President Donald Trump stressed his primary goal is to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, balancing military threats with offers of economic peace. In response, Iranian forces have entered a state of high combat readiness, threatening severe retaliation and targeting capabilities across the region. The ongoing confrontation has severely disrupted maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, driving global oil prices to significant new highs and expanding conflicts across multiple Middle Eastern fronts.

Washington has warned that fresh air strikes against Iran could happen as early as Sunday while maintaining that a diplomatic settlement is still possible. President Donald Trump stressed his primary goal is to prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, balancing military threats with offers of economic peace. In response, Iranian forces have entered a state of high combat readiness, threatening severe retaliation and targeting capabilities across the region. The ongoing confrontation has severely disrupted maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, driving global oil prices to significant new highs and expanding conflicts across multiple Middle Eastern fronts.

Washington has warned that fresh air strikes against Iran could come as early as Sunday, while insisting that a settlement remains within reach. Speaking to reporters in Florida on Saturday, President Donald Trump declined to say whether an attack had been decided, asking whether anyone expected him to announce such a plan in advance. He said the United States could see the matter through or Iran could yet agree to a deal, and that in either case Washington would win. He also questioned whether Tehran would honour any agreement.

Trump described his central aim as preventing Iran from ever building a nuclear weapon, arguing that earlier American operations had not necessarily secured a lasting result. He raised the prospect of "another little Epic Fury", the codename of the bombing campaign launched against Iran on February 28, and argued that the B-2 raids of the past had not been enough.

Tehran has answered with warnings of its own and a move to combat readiness. Iranian armed forces have been placed on alert in response to the American threats. Armed Forces Chief of Staff Ali Abdollahi declared that American naval forces would be barred from the Persian Gulf and that any approaching vessel would be targeted. He mocked the claim that Iran's military had been dismantled, arguing that US carrier groups keep their distance for fear of Iranian anti-ship weapons. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has warned that even a limited strike would draw a reply several times greater.

Iranian media and analysts have pointed to a "dead hand" doctrine, under which commands in all 31 provinces could hit regional targets if the national leadership were struck, along with threats to cut undersea communications cables should civilian infrastructure come under fire. In Tehran, residents have filled fuel tanks, withdrawn cash and stocked up on essentials. President Masoud Pezeshkian has held Washington responsible for the unravelling of the interim agreement and urged both sides back to the table to finalise a binding settlement.

The American approach seems to be brinkmanship along with the promise of economic rehabilitation. Trump says the naval blockade has cut more than $25 billion from Iran's oil revenues over 100 days, and he has offered a "big, beautiful" peace as the alternative to an attack meant to finish the job. Special envoy Tom Barrack has suggested that strikes could fall over the weekend. Central Command is reported to have prepared several strike options for Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. Iran is reported to have offered to reopen the waterway in exchange for an end to the blockade, although Iranian security outlets insist that any reopening must also bring American acceptance of responsibility for its actions and of Tehran's terms. Foreign ministers from the region and Europe met in Istanbul without American or Iranian delegates, and Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Egypt have urged diplomacy to end the war.

The IRGC says several tankers have struck mines in the Strait of Hormuz, leaving the corridor effectively shut and pushing Brent crude above $117 a barrel, the highest level since April. Trump has accused Iran of staging maritime incidents to inflate prices ahead of the American midterms.

The war no longer sits in a single theatre. Houthi forces have stepped up drone and ballistic missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, hitting targets near Riyadh and King Fahd International Airport in Dammam and forcing Saudi Aramco to evacuate its Dhahran headquarters. Washington has issued travel advisories for 13 countries in the region and ordered embassy staff to leave in some, citing intelligence on advanced Iranian plots against diplomats. Fighting in southern Lebanon and the Israeli lockdown of the West Bank after the shooting outside Hebron run in parallel, and Tehran insists that any ceasefire must cover every front.

Elections in the US and Israel further complicate things. Israel votes on October 27 and America on November 3. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has long argued for regime change in Tehran. Yet, army chief Lt Gen Eyal Zamir is reported to have noted privately that a strike before the Israeli election was not operationally required. Analysts say renewed, larger action is more likely after the midterms, and planners in Washington and Tel Aviv are reportedly preparing for that window.

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