‘Act of war’: Trump administration warns a retaliatory attack on Iran is on the table

The US has issued its strongest threat to Iran yet, with Donald Trump saying an attack is possible and could escalate into a new war.

The Trump administration has ordered new sanctions on Iran following an attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities last weekend.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Iran of carrying out an “act of war” with the Saturday aerial strikes, marking the strongest condemnation yet from any American official on the attack.

“The Saudis were the nation that was attacked. It was on their soil. It was an act of war against them directly,” he told reporters.

Saturday’s attack on Saudi Arabia was the most damaging blow on the Middle Eastern kingdom in more than four years of civil war in Yemen.

It helped drive world oil prices up by 10 per cent on Monday — the fastest rise in over a decade.

Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in response to the years-long Saudi-led war in Yemen that has killed tens of thousands of people.

Mr Pompeo said their claim was irrelevant. “This was an Iranian attack,” he said.

The Trump administration has ordered new sanctions on Iran following an attack on Saudi Arabian oil facilities last weekend.

President Donald Trump stopped short of directly accusing the Iranian government of being behind the attack, but he did confirm a retaliatory attack was on the table.

Asked in Los Angeles whether the US would consider a retaliatory strike on Iran, he said: “There are many options. There’s the ultimate option and there are options a lot less than that.”

Mr Trump is moving to increase financial sanctions on Tehran over the attack.

The decision comes as Saudi Arabia has presented fragments of 18 drones and seven cruise missiles as “material evidence” that Iran was responsible for the attacks.

The Saudi Defence Ministry presented shards of missiles and drones, laid out on white cloths, in front of an audience of media and diplomats.

President Donald Trump stopped short of directly accusing the Iranian government of being behind the attack, but he did confirm a retaliatory attack was on the table.

Colonel Turki al-Maliki said the collection, combined with analysis of the precision and direction of the attack showed it was “unquestionably sponsored by Iran”.

“The evidence … that you have seen in front of you, makes this undeniable,” he said at a news conference.

He described the attack as “an assault on international humanity, a deliberate attempt to disrupt the global economy” and said the range of missiles showed it could “never be launched from Yemen”.

Showing the wing of a drone, he claimed data recovered from the computers was “proof” Iran was behind the attack.

He said 18 drones had been fired at the Abqauiq oil facility, while seven cruise missiles had been launched at other targets — all from a northerly direction.

The colonel said the launch points for the missiles could not be given yet but would be announced at another press conference. He said Iran’s denial had been a “false narrative”.

Saudi military spokesman Colonel Turki al-Malki displays what he describes as an Iranian cruise missile and drones used in the attack on Saudi Arabia's oil industry. Picture: Amr Nabil/AP

Earlier in the week, Iran warned the US it was “ready for a fully-fledged war”, despite continuing to deny involvement in the drone attacks.

A senior Revolutionary Guard commander, Amirali Hajizadeh, told Tasnim news agency: “Everybody should know that all American bases and their aircraft carriers in a distance of up to 2000km around Iran are within the range of our missiles.

“Because of the tension and sensitive situation, our region is like a powder keg.

“When these contacts come too close, when forces come into contact with one another, it is possible a conflict happens because of a misunderstanding.”

‘MAXIMUM PRESSURE’

The attack comes against a backdrop of increasing tension between the US and Iran, after President Trump pulled out of the 2015 peace deal that capped Iranian nuclear progress in exchange for lifting economic sanctions.

That has been replaced by a “maximum pressure” campaign under President Trump and National Security Adviser John Bolton. Mr Bolton has since stepped down and been replaced by Robert C. O’Brien in the role, Mr Trump announced on Wednesday.

Mr Trump has previously said he does not want war but that the US is “locked and loaded”.

Saudi Arabia is the world’s top oil exporter and produces 5.7 million barrels a day, which is expected to be restored at the end of the month.

Earlier this week Saudi Arabia announced it would join the International Maritime Security Construct operating in the Strait of Hormuz — of which the US and Australia are members, in order to support peaceful trade — after high profile stoushes with British tankers in the region.

With wires