WASHINGTON
\nThe United States has completed its offensive operations against Iran, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday, even as Washington warned it was ready to unleash a \u201cdevastating\u201d response to any new attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Rubio\u2019s remarks came after Washington\u2019s top military officer said American forces remain ready to resume combat operations if ordered, as clashes in the vital waterway threatened to unravel a fragile ceasefire.
\nIran\u2019s Revolutionary Guards navy warned of a \u201cfirm response\u201d if ships deviated from its approved route through the strait, as the country\u2019s chief negotiator said Tehran \u201chad not even started yet,\u201d following a spate of attacks in the crucial trade route. The United Arab Emirates announced it was intercepting a barrage of missiles and drones from Iran for a second day \u2014 a claim Tehran \u201ccategorically\u201d denied.
\n\u201cThe armed forces…did not launch any missile or drone operation,\u201d Iran\u2019s Khatam al-Anbiya command said. Iran fired missiles and drones at US forces on Monday, while Washington said it struck six Iranian boats it accused of threatening commercial shipping, in the sharpest escalation since a month-long truce. US Central Command remains \u201cready to resume major combat operations…if ordered,\u201d General Dan Caine told reporters.
\n\u201cNo adversary should mistake our current restraint with a lack of resolve.\u201d President Donald Trump urged Iran to \u201cdo the smart thing\u201d and make a deal, saying he did not want to kill more Iranians even as the ceasefire teetered. He earlier dismissed the conflict as \u201ca little skirmish,\u201d adding: \u201cIran has no chance.\u201d
\nPentagon chief Pete Hegseth had said the United States was \u201cnot looking for a fight\u201d but warned attacks would face \u201coverwhelming and devastating\u201d force. Iran\u2019s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the status quo was \u201cintolerable,\u201d warning the US \u201cmalign presence will diminish\u201d as Tehran vowed to retain control of Hormuz.
\nMonday\u2019s exchange of fire came as the rivals enforced dueling maritime blockades following Trump\u2019s plan to guide ships out of the Gulf. The war, sparked more than two months ago by US-Israeli strikes, has battered the global economy despite a weeks-long ceasefire. Israel\u2019s air force chief Omer Tischler said the military was ready to \u201cdeploy the entire air force eastward if required.\u201d
\nMilitary chief Eyal Zamir added that the army remained on \u201chigh alert\u201d and ready to respond to threats in the Gulf. Iran denied any naval losses but accused Washington of killing five civilians aboard boats. Despite tensions, Danish freight giant Maersk said one of its ships had transited Hormuz under US escort.
\nThe UAE called the attacks \u201ca dangerous escalation,\u201d while Saudi Arabia urged efforts toward a political solution. Rubio accused Iran of \u201cholding the world\u2019s economy hostage\u201d through threats to shipping and the laying of sea mines, and said Washington and Gulf allies had drafted a UN Security Council resolution demanding Tehran halt attacks and disclose the location of mines. \u2014 DNA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON The United States has completed its offensive operations against Iran, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday, even as Washington warned it was ready to unleash a \u201cdevastating\u201d response to any new attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Rubio\u2019s remarks came after Washington\u2019s top military officer said American forces remain ready to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":524229,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-545059","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n