Iran’s top commander issues chilling five-word warning to Trump with retaliation imminent

The top commander of Iran's armed forces stated that the United States has opened the door to retaliation, with Iran prepared to target American interests after U.S. President Donald Trump issued attacks on three Iranian nuclear plants.

"Criminal America has opened the door for the fighters of Islam in the armed forces for any action against its interests and army," Major General Abdolrahim Mousavi, chief of Iran's Armed Forces, warned. He added: "And we will never retreat."

Mousavi stated that the U.S. had “directly involved itself in the war by violating the sovereignty of Islamic Iran and infringing upon the sacred territory of our nation."

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On Sunday, President Trump announced that the operation to strike three Iranian nuclear facilities was "very successful."He added that the U.S. forces "totally obliterated" the three sites.

Ebrahim Zolfaqari, a spokesman for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya central military headquarters, issued his own warning to Trump. "Mr. Trump, the gambler, you may start this war, but we will be the ones to end it," he said in a recorded statement.

Mousavi and Zolfaqari's messages are part of a series of strong statements made by top military commanders on Monday. However, since the U.S. strike, Iran’s most influential leader, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, has not commented.

During a speech in Istanbul, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on Sunday that his country has "multiple options" for retaliating against the U.S. attacks. Iran's military leadership is convening to coordinate a response.

Reportedly, options on the table include drone retaliation and potential disruptions to shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf. Israel has indicated that further operations within Iranian territory are imminent, and Western officials are closely monitoring for signs of Iranian escalation or the mobilization of proxy forces.

The U.S.'s direct involvement in the conflict could lead Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to activate its remaining proxies in Iraq, Yemen, and Syria—groups that have previously attacked American interests in the region.

According to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), the US has a presence at 19 sites throughout the region, with analysts identifying eight of these as locations with a permanent US military footprint. As of June 13, the CFR estimated that approximately 40,000 US troops are stationed in the Middle East.

Iran could affect commercial shipping in the Gulf by potentially closing the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for oil transport. There have not been major disruptions in the global oil supply so far. However, any interruption in oil exports or attempts by Iran to block the Strait of Hormuz could result in a significant crisis in the global oil market.

Additionally, some experts say that Iran is very likely to race for a nuclear bomb now, even if the current regime collapses and new leaders come to power.

“Trump just guaranteed that Iran will be a nuclear weapons state in the next 5 to 10 years. Particularly if the regime changes,” Trita Parsi, executive vice president of the Quincy Institute in Washington, DC, said on X.

Parsi has noted that should the regime fall and new military groups take control, they are expected to be significantly more aggressive than the current administration and might pursue nuclear weapons as their primary means of deterrence.

For now, it seems that Iran will continue to exchange missile attacks with Israel. Iranian missiles struck a group of buildings in Tel Aviv, resulting in 86 people being admitted to the hospital with injuries overnight and on Sunday morning, according to Israel’s Ministry of Health.

Despite the commanders' jarring threats toward the U.S., knowing they may not be able to sustain a full-scale confrontation with the U.S., Iran may seek to maintain the status quo, engaging only with Israel.