Mohammad Marandi, a former advisor to Iran's negotiating team, said in remarks reported by Israeli media that tonight may be the last night of routine in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, and possibly Oman, and called on residents to prepare for evacuation. Marandi threatened that if Iran's civilian infrastructure is attacked, the key infrastructure of those countries, as well as Israel and possibly Jordan, would be destroyed.
This evening, Channel 12 news quoted Iranian official Mohammad Marandi warning that tonight may be the last night of normalcy in the Gulf states, and that if the US strikes Iranian civilian infrastructure, the vital infrastructure of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, Oman, and possibly Jordan, as well as Israel, would be destroyed. Marandi specifically cited the Trump administration's statements as the basis for his warning. This marks the latest in a series of escalating threats from the Iranian official.
The Zioneer first reported the warning at 18:37 Jerusalem, initially as an unverified Iranian statement. Within minutes, the desk identified Marandi as the source, attributing the threat to an IRGC senior official. In the most recent update, also at 18:37, the desk reported that Marandi explicitly referenced the Trump administration's statements as the trigger for his warning, adding a layer of context to the threat.
As The Zioneer has reported, Marandi has been a prominent voice in Iranian diplomatic messaging, previously denying Trump's claims about Doha talks and warning Gulf states of evacuation. The Trump administration has threatened strikes on Iranian infrastructure, with a senior US official saying Trump is losing patience and preparing "violent assaults" on Iranian infrastructure. The current threat comes amid heightened US-Iran tensions.
The warning has not been corroborated by independent sources, and no military action has been taken. It remains unclear whether the threat reflects actual Iranian military plans or is a rhetorical escalation.
6 developments
- StrongMarandi says 'time to evacuate' Gulf states in latest response to Trump threat
- StrongIranian military source expands threat: evacuate Gulf ports as well as airports if US strikes tonight
- StrongIranian official warns of 'strong response' to any US attack; reported evacuations from Tehran
- DevelopingIranian channels threaten to bomb Gulf oil infrastructure if Trump attacks
Source and signal
- Open-source intake