Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned Wednesday that any resumed U.S. airstrikes will trigger attacks on targets “far outside the Middle East,” extending the potential battlefield well beyond the region where fighting has already cost American lives.
“If aggression against Iran is repeated, the promised regional war will this time be taken beyond the region,” the IRGC said in a statement. The corps did not name specific targets but noted that strikes could come “in places that Israel and the U.S. would not expect.”
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi echoed the warning on X, claiming Iranian forces were the “first to strike down a touted F-35” and previewing expanded capabilities if conflict resumes. “With lessons learned and knowledge we gained, return to war will feature many more surprises,” Araghchi wrote.
The threats came as U.S. officials maintained they are prepared to act. Vice President JD Vance said the United States is “locked and loaded” to resume strikes if nuclear negotiations with Tehran fail.
President Trump called off a planned strike on Iran on May 18. Talks on Iran’s nuclear program remain unresolved.
Iran has already demonstrated a reach that stretches well outside the Gulf. During the current conflict, Iranian missiles struck the joint UK-U.S. Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean, roughly 2,000 miles from Iranian territory. NATO air defenses intercepted separate Iranian missiles targeting Turkish territory.
Iran-backed Iraqi militia groups launched six drones at the United Arab Emirates this week. One struck near the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant, the UAE said Wednesday.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei separately framed the ongoing conflict in religious terms. In a series of posts on X, Khamenei described the war with the United States and Israel as what counterterrorism analysts called a declaration of “jihad,” or sacred religious war.
“Strip the euphemism away, and what Khamenei is invoking here is jihad,” said Dr. Omar Mohammed, an analyst with the Program on Extremism at George Washington University. “Sacred Defense is the Islamic Republic’s preferred term for jihad against an aggressor; it carries the full weight of religious obligation in Shia jurisprudence.”
Israel’s military entered its highest alert level for potential action, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened an emergency security meeting.
The IRGC’s threat to expand operations beyond the Middle East raises new concerns for U.S. installations in Europe, the Pacific, and elsewhere. Iran’s proxy networks in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq remain active and could launch new offensives if full-scale strikes resume, according to the Washington Times.
Trump is expected to attend the G7 summit in France on June 15-17, where tensions with allies over the Iran conflict are expected to be a central topic.
