Major-General Qassem Soleimani, head of the elite Quds Force of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps, said, addressing to US President Donald Trump, that his forces are "ready to confront the US" if Trump proceeds with his warnings that Iran will bear consequences "the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered."
"You know that this war will destroy all that you possess. You will start this war but we will be the ones to impose its end. Therefore you have to be careful about insulting the Iranian people and the president of our Republic," the top Iranian general said in a speech quoted by Iran's Al Alam TV broadcaster in the Arabic language.
The day before, Iran's Revolutionary Guards' Chief Major-General Mohammad Ali Jafari stated that the US oil threats against Iran "can be easily answered."
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Tensions between the two countries began to rise after Trump odered to withdraw the US from the nuclear deal with Iran, also called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Actions (JCPOA), in May. After abandoning the agreement, which stipulated lifting of anti-Iranian sanctions in exchange for concessions on its nuclear program, Washington vowed to re-impose restrictive measures. In addition, US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin emphasized that the United States was ready to slap sanctions on every country that continued to import oil from Iran after the November 4 deadline.