President Donald Trump has threatened to bomb Iran 'hard again tonight' after declaring the interim peace deal between the two nations effectively over. Speaking at the Nato summit in Ankara, Trump launched a blistering attack on Tehran, calling the regime 'scum' and saying: 'To me, I think it's over.'
The remarks came a day after US forces conducted the most significant wave of strikes on Iranian targets since the ceasefire was signed, in response to attacks on three ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran retaliated by striking US air bases in Qatar and Kuwait, raising fears of a return to full-scale conflict.
Nato secretary general Mark Rutte defended the US strikes, stating that Iran had violated the ceasefire. French president Emmanuel Macron also backed Washington, saying Iranian strikes on US bases breached the accord, but noted that 60-day ceasefire talks would continue. The US Central Command described Iran's actions as 'unwarranted, dangerous and a clear violation'.
Iran's parliamentary speaker Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf accused the US of violating the memorandum of understanding, writing on X: 'The era of bullying and extortion is over.' However, Qatar blamed Iran for attacking its LNG tanker Al Rekayyat, which suffered a drone strike that caused a fire in its engine room but no casualties.
The summit was further overshadowed by Trump's renewed interest in acquiring Greenland, prompting Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen to vow to defend 'every inch' of it. Trump also confused Iran for Japan and appeared to mistake Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky for Vladimir Putin. He confirmed that the US would grant Ukraine a license to manufacture Patriot interceptors, describing them as a 'defensive weapon'.
