Trump says Iran is ‘dead’, vows to respond after renewed clashes

What the report says

US President Donald Trump on Monday intensified his criticism of Iran, saying the country was “dead” and calling on its leaders to be prosecuted for what he described as crimes against humanity. According to Al Jazeera, Trump also said the United States would answer Iran’s recent missile attack on a base in Jordan that hosts US troops. The comments came amid a renewed round of fighting tied to the wider US-Israel war on Iran, which the report said had entered its seventh month.

The article says the latest escalation began after the US military struck Larak Island in southern Iran, saying it had targeted launchers preparing rockets fitted with naval mines for the Strait of Hormuz. Iran then fired missiles at the Jordan base. Trump later told Fox News that the United States would hit back hard, raising the risk that the confrontation could continue.

Al Jazeera reported that Trump has repeatedly argued Iran’s government is collapsing, while Iranian authorities say the state remains intact and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is directing the war effort. The piece also noted that Trump cited a disputed death toll for anti-government protests in Iran, while Tehran has given a much lower figure. The dispute matters because it reflects both the military escalation and the competing claims shaping the conflict’s political narrative.