WorldPosted at: Sep 21 2026 3:02PM


Trump weighs Iran options, asks ‘if and when do I blow the entire nation up?’

Washington, Sep 21 (UNI) US President Donald Trump said he was weighing options over the ongoing conflict with Iran, including whether to launch a major strike against the country, and asked: “If and when do I blow the entire nation up?”
Issuing a fresh ultimatum to Tehran, Trump said he was in a “deciding mode” over the Iran war and warned that “very big things” were going to happen in the near future.
His remarks came after Iran said it had conveyed its conditions to Washington through mediators for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, while the United States and its allies were preparing to resume military operations against Tehran.
Trump told Fox News that he was in a “deciding mode” and that “very big things are going to be happening in the not-so-distant future.”The President described the choices before him as “wiping Iran out, letting them rot economically or making a diplomatic deal.”
“He added, ‘My question is, if and when do I blow the entire nation up? They'd better behave.'”
Trump had also said Thursday that he was considering whether to “go in and annihilate them (the Iranian regime) or do I not,” adding that anything “could happen with me.”
The latest comments came ahead of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s expected visit to New York for the United Nations General Assembly this week. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and other senior Iranian officials are also expected to accompany him.
The Trump administration has said a “core delegation” of Iranian officials will be allowed to attend the high-level session of the General Assembly. Trump has also indicated that he would be open to meeting Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the UN gathering.
Trump’s latest warning is the latest in a series of threats against Iran. In April, he warned that “a whole civilization will die” unless “maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen.” The warning, accompanied by a deadline, was followed by talks between the two sides and a brief ceasefire.
The conflict has also driven up energy prices, with the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial route for global oil shipments, remaining a major flashpoint. The US national average for gasoline stood at USD 4.48 a gallon on Sunday, according to reports.
Meanwhile, Iran’s military warned that its intelligence indicated the United States and its allies could be preparing a new large-scale attack and threatened “painful” retaliation across the Middle East.
“If the U.S. makes any mistake against the Islamic Republic of Iran, all its positions and interests in the region will be targeted by sustained, effective and painful attacks,” the Khatam al-Anbia Central Headquarters of Iran said, according to semi-official Tasnim news agency.
Iran also warned that regional countries supporting a new US-led strike would be treated as parties to the conflict.
The exchange comes as Washington and Tehran remain at odds following the collapse of a June memorandum, while Iranian officials prepare to attend the UN General Assembly in New York.
According to Tasnim, Pezeshkian is expected to hold meetings with leaders of several countries on the sidelines of the UN gathering.
Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Sunday that Iran must continue fighting and negotiating to push back its enemies, while pursuing diplomacy when it has the upper hand on the battlefield.
The US State Department separately issued a security alert warning of the possibility of further escalation in the Middle East and urged Americans to remain vigilant, citing possible flight cancellations and airspace closures.
The warning followed claims by Iran-backed Houthi militants that they had launched missile and drone attacks targeting Riyadh on Saturday, triggering the first air-raid alert in the Saudi capital since fighting escalated in July.
Saudi authorities said they intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile and reported no casualties or damage. Saudi-led coalition spokesperson Major-General Turki al-Maliki said on X that the Houthis had also attempted to target civilians and infrastructure in several parts of the kingdom, but the attacks were thwarted by Saudi air defenses.
Iran’s top security official Mohsen Rezaei separately said Tehran had conveyed its conditions for ending the war with the United States through Qatari mediators and warned that Iran was prepared to respond with greater force if Washington resumed military action.
Rezaei said Iran was now better prepared for a renewed conflict than it had been during the first 40 days of the war, which began in late February following joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
“We will confront America with greater force, and with more numerous and more painful strikes,” Rezaei said in an interview with the media.
The full-scale fighting has been paused for months, but tensions between the two sides remain high. A June 17 60-day memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran expired last month, while attacks have increased, particularly around the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has effectively closed. The United States continues to maintain a naval blockade of Iran’s southern ports.
Iran’s conditions include an end to the war on all fronts, including Lebanon; the release of its frozen funds; an end to the naval blockade of Iranian ports; an end to US interference in Iran’s internal affairs; an end to US cooperation with “the opponents of our revolution”; and an end to all US attacks on Iranian territory.
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