Trump threatens Iran with 'major military punishment' if Houthis launch future attacks

LAST UPDATE | 7 hrs ago

US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump said he will hold Iran responsible for any future attacks by Yemen’s Houthis, which are backed by Iran, after the group shot at two Saudi Arabian ships in the Red Sea.

In a post to Truth Social, the US president said the Houthis have “acted very responsibly” over the past year after an attack by the US. “Unfortunately, now they are starting up again”.

He threatened Iran with “major military punishment” if the Houthis “do this again”, as well as the Houthis themselves.

“I am very disappointed with [the Houthis] in that they have, until now, acted very professionally and smart,” Trump said.

The attack on the two Saudi Arabian tankers follows an escalation in the US-Iran conflict, with the US carrying out a 12th night of airstrikes.

The UK withdrew remaining diplomatic staff from Iran.

Trump earlier threatened to knock out one Iranian bridge or power plant in return for each attack on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, warning he was “not finished” with a war.

The attacks were designed to reduce Iran’s “ability to threaten civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting regional waters”, the United States said.

The British Foreign Office (FCDO) website said, due to the security situation, UK staff have been temporarily withdrawn from Iran.

“Our embassy continues to operate remotely, it said on a post to X.

The FCDO advises against all travel to Iran, saying British and dual British-Iranian residents face “significant risk of arrest, questioning or detention”.

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A similar move was made in February ahead of the start of US and Israeli combat operations.

Announcing the end of the latest wave of strikes on Thursday morning, US Central Command said its forces struck military targets including maritime capabilities, missile and drone storage facilities, coastal surveillance sites and air defence assets.

Missiles struck near the cities of Ahvaz, Ramshir and Andimeshk in western Iran, according to Iranian state media, who said two people were killed in the town of Shalamcheh on the Iraqi border.

Kuwait’s army said on X that the country’s air defences were “confronting attacks by hostile drones, following the sinful Iranian aggression”.

‘An eye for an eye’

Trump had warned earlier that one bridge or power plant would be destroyed for each ship shot at by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz.

“From this point forward, any time the Islamic Republic of Iran shoots at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, whether it be by Missile, Rocket, Drone, or any other device or weapon, the United States will bomb and destroy ONE BRIDGE OR POWER PLANT,” Trump wrote on social media.

Foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi also said an “eye for an eye” approach would be adopted by Iran.

“Any aggression against Iran, including our infrastructure, will compel a powerful and decisive response,” he posted on X on Wednesday.

The 11th night of strikes on Iran into Wednesday saw air defences opening fire over the capital Tehran.

Iran launched a missile attack on a Jordanian city while alerts were sounded in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Iran has responded to US attacks by targeting energy infrastructure and desalination plants which provide drinking water in neighbouring Gulf countries.

International law generally prohibits such attacks unless the infrastructure is being used for military purposes.

Additional reporting by Emma Hickey