Iran Issues New Threat to US as Ships Come Under Attack in the Middle East
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Iran has warned the United States and Israel that Tehran has prepared a new operational plan in the event of another attack. The threat comes as several commercial vessels have come under attack in waters around the Arabian Peninsula, fuelling concerns about shipping security and global energy supplies.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said the Iranian military had prepared a response more forceful than those seen in previous conflicts.
“The Iranian Armed Forces have prepared a response to any new adventurism, one that will be far more devastating than the previous 12-day war or 40-day war,” Rezaei wrote on X on Sunday (18 October 2026).
Rezaei also warned that Tehran’s new strategy would differ from the patterns familiar to its adversaries.
“Iran’s new operational plan will not follow the rules they have known so far,” he said in translated remarks, as quoted by CNBC International.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said he did not plan to use nuclear weapons to attack Iran or deploy ground troops to the country. He made the remarks in an interview with Newsmax on Thursday evening.
“I will not use nuclear weapons. We don’t need to. We are the greatest nuclear power in the world,” Trump said. His comments came after reports of the possible use of the conventional GBU-43/B MOAB bomb, nicknamed the Mother of All Bombs.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, quoted by the state news agency IRNA, said Tehran would not give up its sovereign rights under pressure, but remained open to dialogue. He made the remarks as military tensions rose and several vessels reported security incidents in the region.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a British maritime monitoring agency, reported that a tugboat travelling south-east of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was hit by two unidentified projectiles on Sunday.
A day earlier, a liquefied natural gas tanker south-west of Yemen was reportedly approached by a small boat carrying seven people, who fired two shots. The vessel’s security team returned fire with two warning shots. On Friday, another tanker north-east of Saudi Arabia also reported being hit by a rocket-propelled grenade fired from a small boat.
Tensions also drove global oil prices higher. Brent crude briefly reached US$110 a barrel before closing 3.7% up at US$109.86. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 3.5% to US$101.41 a barrel. For the week, WTI gained more than 10%, while Brent rose nearly 5%.
In Saudi Arabia, the military said it had intercepted several missiles crossing the Red Sea, including one heading towards the Yanbu oil export terminal. Three drones were also reportedly destroyed in Riyadh and the kingdom’s southern region.
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Energy had previously said that Aramco was targeted in an attack on one of its administrative buildings in Dhahran, amid a series of attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi group.