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Iran’s military has warned that any renewed conflict with the United States could last longer than the previous round of fighting, insisting that US President Donald Trump would not determine how or when it ends.
Army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia made the remarks on Sunday in comments carried by Iranian state television, saying Tehran would not allow Washington to dictate the duration or terms of a future war.
“A potential future war could last longer than previous conflict, and the American president would not be in a position to dictate the timing or the conditions of its conclusion,” Akraminia said.
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He was referring to the most intense phase of the conflict that began on February 28, when US and Israeli forces launched strikes on Iran, killing the country’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks across the region, while armed groups backed by Tehran also joined the fighting in Lebanon and Yemen.
Iranian Defence Minister Mehrdad Akhlaghi also warned on Sunday that any attack on the country would trigger a response proportionate to the threat, with significant consequences for those responsible.
He added that Iran would independently determine the scale and timing of its defensive action rather than allow its adversaries to set the terms.
“Those who pose threats will not dictate the scope, timing, or consequences of Iran’s defensive response,” he said.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the ideological branch of Iran’s armed forces, also issued a warning through its spokesman, Hossein Mohebbi.
Mohebbi echoed remarks made a day earlier by Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, saying a confrontation with the United States would not be confined to a particular geographical area and could expose the enemy to attacks across a wider theatre.
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Meanwhile, Trump said on Saturday that US forces had destroyed a large part of Iran’s military capabilities but still had one or two remaining targets to deal with.
He claimed that the outstanding targets could be dealt with within minutes, adding that American forces had already neutralised Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
“We’ve knocked out their nuclear. We still have to take care of, I would say one or two sites, but we can do that in 10 minutes,” Trump said.
