TEHRAN: Iran's supreme leader on Saturday warned the United States and Israel against launching new attacks following their threats to resume strikes after crucial elections, as fears mount over a return to fighting.
The declaration came as the Islamic republic's top diplomat said there were no plans to hold talks with the United States, as indirect mediation via Qatar continues.
President Donald Trump has warned of fresh military action after the US holds midterm elections this week, saying last weekend that he was weighing whether to "finish them off".
Polls in both countries could determine the direction of the conflict, with Israel having voted last Tuesday but yet to form a new government.
"Any level or type of threat must be met with an immediate, impactful and geographically unrestricted response," Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei told top military commanders in a meeting, according to a statement.
The encounter was the first reported meeting between Khamenei and military top brass, and included armed forces chief of staff Ali Abdollahi, army chief Amir Hatami and Revolutionary Guards commander Ahmad Vahidi.
Khamenei also ordered commanders to update Iran's target list to include "all types of tangible and intangible assets belonging to the American-Zionist enemy".
Iran has previously warned it would consider severing undersea cables in the Strait of Hormuz.
Since the initial US-Israeli strikes in February, ordinary Iranians "have been left in a state of limbo for the past year", Fariba, a Tehran housewife, said. But other residents in the Iranian capital brushed off the possible return to full-scale conflict.
"We do not fear another war. We have been at war for 48 years now," said Ebrahim, a salesman in his forties.
Since the outbreak of the war, Tehran has restricted shipping through the strategic waterway, which normally carries around one-fifth of global oil consumption.
The blockade has caused a spike in global energy prices, making the war unpopular among the US public ahead of midterm congressional elections on Tuesday. — AFP
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