The warning came as US Air Force bombers capable of hitting enemy targets with up to 34 tonnes of explosives arrived at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, suggesting Trump’s mega-attack on Iran, previously dubbed the ‘big one’ may be imminent
Donald Trump warned Iran that they would be hit “very hard” as the US prepared for a missile onslaught dubbed “The Big One”. The US President reacted furiously to an apology from Iran to its neighbouring countries for its air strikes.
Trump said the “promise was only made because of the US Israeli military attacks” and said they were being beaten “to HELL”.
He said the conflict could come to an end if Iran announces an unconditional surrender or when ‘they can’t fight any longer because they don’t have anyone or anything to fight with’.
The warning came as US Air Force bombers capable of hitting enemy targets with up to 34 tonnes of explosives arrived at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, suggesting Trump’s mega-attack on Iran, previously dubbed the ‘big one’ may be imminent.
READ MORE: Ukraine is replacing troops with killer robots on the battlefieldREAD MORE: How dangerous each country in Middle East is right now – check threat level
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian apologised to neighbouring states and said Tehran would not attack them “unless attacked first”, in a video address broadcast on state media. Shortly after Pezeshkian’s address aired, Qatar said it had intercepted a missile attack.
His apology was also later contradicted by Iran’s hardline military guard. Israel says it has begun a new “broad wave” of strikes targeting Iranian infrastructure. And in Lebanon, large-scale evacuations were carried out in the suburbs of southern Beirut.
Defiant Iranian military chiefs had launched a series of retaliatory strikes across the Middle East, with attacks on Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel in a series of assaults that left the region in flames. Drones struck oil facilities and airports in Iraq as US-led troops gunned down several potential attacks over the Kurdish city of Erbil amid warnings of possible attacks on hotels.
A network of Iranian-backed Shia factions, Islamic Resistance in Iraq, claimed it launched an attack on a US military base near Baghdad Airport ‘in retribution’ for the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed last Saturday.
Iran also fired its twenty-third round of strikes, a statement from IRGC-affiliated Tasmin news agency as missiles coming from the region towards Israel were detected.
The 146ft B-1 Lancer at Fairford – nicknamed “Bones” by US military – are supersonic Strategic bombers which carry a huge payload. Three more B-1 Lancer aircraft have arrived at Fairford to take the total to four as the number of Brits evacuated from the Middle East rose to more than 9,000.
Armed forces chief Sir Richard Knighton said he would expect the US to launch missions from the UK “within the next few days”.
A second Government charter flight carrying British citizens from Oman landed at Gatwick Airport early yesterday as efforts to help people trapped in the war zone continue.
The Titan Airways flight departed from Muscat International Airport at 5.30pm before a short layover in Cairo, Egypt. The latest arrivals join around 6,500 Britons who have returned from the United Arab Emirates since widespread conflict began in the region.
Emirates announced it was suspending all flights to and from Dubai after blasts were reportedly heard in the city. About 30 minutes later, the airline said flights would resume, with passengers who have confirmed bookings told to go to the airport.
Dubai International Airport said in a post on X that operations had partially resumed after the suspension, but urged people not to travel to the airport unless they had been contacted by their airline confirming the flight.
The Prime Minister said the UK stands ready to help defend Saudi Arabia should it be needed. It comes after Britain was criticised by allies over its response to the crisis, particularly over the defence of Cyprus, where a UK base was struck by a drone earlier this week.
Air defence destroyer HMS Dragon is not expected to sail to the eastern Mediterranean until next week while France and Greece have deployed military assets to defend the island.
More flights to the UK from the Middle East are expected to be announced over the coming days. Qatar Airways said on Friday evening that it would operate a “limited relief corridor” with flights from Doha on Saturday to Heathrow, Paris, Madrid, Rome and Frankfurt.
Etihad Airways announced on Friday it would be resuming a “limited commercial flight schedule” until March 19, including flights to and from Abu Dhabi to Heathrow, Manchester and Dublin. More than 160,000 people in the region have registered their presence with the Foreign Office as the crisis has deepened.
