Trump Takes Further Action, While Warning Gulf Neighbours They Will Be Treated As "Enemies" If They Join Washington's Economic War on Tehran

Should Trump take action, our confrontation will be like an earthquake, Rezaei said. He added: "If the countries surrounding Iran join the Americans in their economic war, not a drop of oil will leave the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, and we will also target other oil export routes from the Persian Gulf. Trump has promised to wage "Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale" on Iran in what he called the "toughest sanctions in history.

In response, Tehran accused Trump of threatening "economic terrorism. Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei on Saturday said the imminent US announcement of new economic sanctions on Iran was an "assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent member state of the United Nations. Newly disclosed emails show US immigration officials worked directly with Iranian representatives to deport Iranian nationals in 2025, even as tensions between Washington and Tehran escalated.

The records, obtained by the National Iranian American Council and released Tuesday, detail cooperation surrounding three removal flights in September and December 2025 and January 2026 that returned more than 100 Iranians. The emails indicate Iranian representatives requested changes to proposed passenger lists and that US officials sometimes accommodated those requests. Separately, a federal judge in New York struck down a Trump administration policy that suspended visa processing for citizens of 75 nations, including Afghanistan, Iran, Russia, and Somalia.

US District Judge Jeannette Vargas, appointed by President Joe Biden, set aside the policy Friday after ruling it "contrary to law and in excess of statutory authority. The judge ruled Secretary of State Marco Rubio exceeded his authority in issuing the policy, which "runs afoul" of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Political commentator Bill O'Reilly, the former host of The O'Reilly Factor, said on Tuesday night that Trump cannot let Iran make him "look like a loser" because his legacy is tied up in the war with the Islamic Republic.

Appearing on NewsNation's On Balance, O'Reilly said he believes the US does have a strategy going forward. "From what I understand, there is some kind of strategy that will involve a tougher approach on Iran, he claimed. It's top secret, classified.

In other developments, journalist and mother Mariam Abu Dagga was killed in a 2025 Israeli double-tap attack on the last functioning hospital in South Gaza. Food shortages and other problems that sparked outrage over substandard conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln stemmed from Iranian attacks that devastated a key Navy base on the island nation of Bahrain, leaving the ship to rely on supplies from an outpost about 2,200 miles away. MPs have urged Britain to "take the strongest measures" against the Israeli government in the wake of an investigation by The Independent into the killing of journalists, first responders and medics in a double-tap attack on one of the last functioning hospitals in Gaza.

They want Downing Street to increase sanctions and cease all trade with Israel rather than accept weak justifications for apparent war crimes and breaches of international humanitarian law. One sailor went overboard August 3 wearing a life vest and was rescued after nearly an hour in the water, and others were prevented from also jumping off the ship, according to reports.