Iran's Military Vows 'Amazing' New Targets as Tensions Escalate with US

Iran has indicated preparations for a new phase of conflict with the United States, issuing public threats against Washington and its allies in an apparent effort to dissuade President Donald Trump from reigniting the current hostilities. Over the past month, Iranian military commanders have intensified their public messaging, asserting that Iran has amassed significant stockpiles of new weaponry poised for deployment against targets beyond the region should the U.S. resume hostilities that began in February. Iranian officials have threatened to expand their targeting scope if the conflict restarts, considering options such as severing undersea internet cables, attacking AI data centers, and striking regional oil and gas facilities.

“The world will be amazed,” stated Iran’s Revolutionary Guards spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi late last month. “We have new targets that have not yet been attacked,” he added. Nearly nine months after the U.S. and Israel initiated their war on Iran, the conflict has reached a stalemate, leaving uncertainty about Trump’s ultimate strategy and the world contending with economic instability. Both sides have claimed success – Tehran highlighting its resilience and Washington emphasizing the damage inflicted upon the Iranian regime. Concurrently, the Trump administration continues to explore new economic and military measures to compel Iran’s capitulation, a demand Tehran has steadfastly rejected.

“The war is not over,” Mohebbi remarked. “The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has prepared itself for a long-term war.”

Bracing for War

While Iran’s commanders project strength and readiness, ordinary Iranians, already burdened by conflict and economic uncertainty, are once again facing the harsh realities of war. “Every single day and every night, we’re waiting for the bombing to start again,” a 70-year-old resident of Tehran shared with CNN last week. “I’ve charged all my power banks, stocked up on water, and got everything ready, because the attacks could start again at any moment, any day.” A mother of two described the pervasive fear she experiences as she sends her children to school each morning, passing streets patrolled by Revolutionary Guards and near active military bases. “I would like to know exactly what else the US is planning to bomb?” she questioned. “They couldn’t even take (the Iranian leadership) out. You couldn’t negotiate either. So, what’s the point of starting another war?”

Iranians are “convinced” war is set to restart, another Tehran resident told CNN. “It’s all anyone can talk about…you just have it in the back of your head, is tonight the night? Is it tomorrow? I think it makes it worse that there are all this conversation about it, you can’t even take a break,” the resident explained. The individuals speaking to CNN requested anonymity to freely express their concerns about further conflict.

Targeting Europe

In recent weeks, White House advisors have convened meetings to deliberate various options concerning Iran. Although Trump publicly stated he would refrain from new actions before the midterm elections, several advisors privately indicated uncertainty regarding the definitive nature of this statement and its potential to change before election day on November 3. According to multiple U.S. officials familiar with the matter, the U.S. military has developed new strike plans that could involve the deployment of the so-called “mother of all bombs” against Iranian energy infrastructure and nuclear sites if Trump orders a resumption of combat operations, either before or after the midterm elections. The GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb, or MOAB, is the largest non-nuclear munition in the U.S. arsenal and its use would signify a considerable escalation.

“These are propaganda tools intended to intimidate the Iranian people,” stated Alireza Sheikh, an Iranian army commander, on Saturday. “The Iranian people are the father of all bombs.” Iran has signaled a shift towards a more offensive military doctrine, suggesting it may not wait to be attacked and could initiate pre-emptive strikes. Last week, Revolutionary Guards social media accounts reported that Iran conducted nationwide military exercises, including the simultaneous launch of 30 ballistic missiles. Farzin Nadimi, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute think tank focusing on U.S. foreign policy in the region, commented that if an emboldened Tehran were to deploy its new long-range missiles against Europe, potential targets could include U.S. forces stationed at airbases in England or the logistics hub in Ramstein, Germany, which is the largest U.S. military installation outside the United States. “However, Iran would likely reserve that possibility to a very top level of escalation,” Nadimi added.

The U.S. relocated all its long-range bombers stationed in the United Kingdom to their American home bases earlier this month following an unspecified new threat, officials reported. Days prior to this move, the British government apprehended several individuals in connection with an alleged Iranian plot to target the UK airbase where the U.S. bombers were stationed. B‑1B Lancer bomber at the UK’s RAF Fairford airbase, which hosts US Air Force personnel. Toby Shepheard/Reuters Armed police stand guard manning a roadblock at an entrance to RAF Fairford base in Fairford, south-west England. Justin Tallis/AFP/Getty Images

Nadimi suggested that to enhance their chances of hitting targets, Iran might employ more sophisticated and coordinated swarms of AI-enabled drones equipped with cameras and datalinks. These drones could communicate with each other and adjust their flight paths and speed to circumvent jamming and air defenses. “They haven’t demonstrated these capabilities yet, but they discussed developing such technologies in the past,” Nadimi noted. Iran may also aim to enhance its cruise missile capabilities to include supersonic propulsion for improved evasion of interception and attempt to jam military communication and surveillance satellites, he further explained.

Region Prepared

Iranian commanders are preparing for what they perceive as an inevitable resumption of hostilities, while simultaneously attempting to deter Washington by emphasizing the potential costs of an attack, according to Ali Vaez, deputy program director for the Middle East and North Africa at the International Crisis Group. “Tehran wants to make clear that the next round will be fought on a much wider battlefield, with fewer restraints and potentially more lethal consequences,” Vaez stated. “But the danger is that what Iran intends as deterrence could be interpreted in Washington as provocation, making the very war Tehran hopes to avert more likely.”

When the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Iran in February, they reportedly killed the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, along with Iranian military commanders, top officials, and civilians, including schoolchildren. Iran’s retaliation primarily targeted its Arab neighbors, which it accused of collaborating with Washington. Iran effectively blocked the Strait of Hormuz, the sole maritime route for oil exports by neighboring nations, before striking civilian infrastructure across Arab cities. Dubai, a major tourist hub, was targeted, water facilities in Kuwait were hit, and attacks on data centers disrupted banking services in several countries throughout the region. An aerial view shows ships anchored off the coast of Khasab in Oman’s Musandam Governorate, near the Strait of Hormuz, on October 2. AFP/Getty Images

Iran launched over 2,500 missiles and drones solely against the United Arab Emirates, exceeding the number directed at any other country, including Israel. The UAE’s defense ministry reported that Abu Dhabi intercepted nearly all of these projectiles. Last week, Mohsen Rezaei, head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, warned that Iran would target U.S. assets in the region, including those within the UAE, in retaliation for any new attacks.

“If another war breaks out, numerous undersea cables, data centers, AI facilities and other infrastructure across the region could be destroyed,” Rezaei declared. A senior UAE official informed journalists on Thursday that his country is better prepared should hostilities resume. “We don’t want war,” said Ali Al-Nuaimi, chairman of the Defense, Interior and Foreign Affairs Committee of the UAE’s Federal National Council. “But if a war starts today, we are ready to deal with any threat that comes our way better than we were on February 28.” “Whatever is needed to protect our national security, sovereignty and people, we will do it.”