President Donald Trump has ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran but signalled further strikes on its nuclear sites, as attacks by Iran-aligned Houthi forces on Saudi Arabia intensified and US commanders claimed growing financial pressure on Tehran.
No nukes, but no let-up
In a Newsmax interview, Trump said: “I wouldn’t use nuclear. We don’t have to,” Al Jazeera reported. He did not rule out the conventional GBU-43/B “mother of all bombs,” said the US might again hit Iran’s Pickaxe Mountain site at Natanz, and said he did not see a need for ground troops. He said the war would end “very soon,” by force or diplomacy. Analysts expect another phase of fighting after the US midterm elections on November 3.
Saudi Arabia under fire
The Saudi-led coalition said it destroyed a ballistic missile aimed at Yanbu, a Red Sea oil export hub, and intercepted two cruise missiles and three drones, Gulf News reported. Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport was reportedly suspended through October 17. Iran’s Foreign Ministry denied any role in the Houthi attacks and repeated an offer to mediate between Riyadh and the Houthis.
Pressure on Tehran
US Central Command said more than 50,000 American personnel are deployed in the region and that 400 commercial vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz in the past week. It claimed Iran cannot access about $25 billion in oil export revenue, figures that have not been independently verified. The US Treasury designated 17 vessels and 17 companies tied to Iranian oil shipments on October 8.
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