Iran will treat any American attack as the "start of war" and Tehran will respond by striking the "heart of Tel Aviv", a senior political adviser to Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has warned.
Belligerent remarks between Washington and Tehran have escalated in the past week. On Wednesday, US President Donald Trump warned Iran that it faced a "far worse" attack than last year's strikes unless it begins talks over its nuclear programme. The USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group has arrived in the Middle East, meaning Washington has major firepower within range of Iran.
The US previously threatened to launch an attack over the Tehran regime's deadly crackdown on nationwide protests.
"Any military action by the US from any origin and at any level will be considered the start of war and [the] response will be immediate, all out and unprecedented, targeting the heart of Tel Aviv and all those supporting the aggressor," Ali Shamkhani said on X on Tuesday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also warned that Tehran would respond forcefully to any attack, but did not rule out a new nuclear deal.
A Turkish Foreign Ministry source told Reuters that Mr Araghchi would visit the country on Friday for talks with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on the tension with the US. Mr Fidan has said Ankara opposes any foreign intervention in Iran and urged Washington to resolve its issues with Iran "one by one".
The US and Iran had been engaged in negotiations aimed at reaching a nuclear deal, but talks were derailed in June last year when Israel launched strikes on Tehran. The US attacked Iranian nuclear sites during the 12-day war. Since then, Tehran has been cautious about returning to the negotiating table.
Iranian authorities have blamed the nationwide protests and related deaths on “foreign-backed” rioters, accusing the US and Israel of inciting violence and unrest. More than 6,300 people have been killed in the demonstrations, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said.
Mr Trump said he held back from ordering military action against Tehran after being told protest killings were easing and plans for large-scale executions had been halted.
