Iran on April 2 threatened "crushing" attacks on the U.S. and Israel, firing missiles at Tel Aviv after U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to bomb the Islamic republic "back to the Stone Ages.”
The war, which erupted more than a month ago with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, has spread throughout the Middle East and roiled the global economy, impacting hundreds of millions of people worldwide.
In a prime-time White House address, Trump said the U.S. was "very close" to achieving its objectives but warned attacks would intensify if Iran did not reach a negotiated settlement.
"Over the next two to three weeks, we are going to bring them back to the Stone Ages, where they belong," said Trump in a 19-minute speech delivered in front of American flags.
Iran's response was immediate, with Israeli air defenses pressed into action and police responding to "several" impact sites, as four people were reportedly lightly injured in the Tel Aviv area.
Trump has recently raised the possibility of a deal to end the war, which has pushed up fuel prices in the US and around the world, and pushed down his approval ratings.
He said talks could be possible with Iran's new leadership, which he described as "less radical and much more reasonable" than their predecessors.
But Tehran has dismissed Washington's ceasefire overtures, describing U.S. demands to end the conflict as "maximalist and irrational.”
"Messages have been received through intermediaries, including Pakistan, but there is no direct negotiation with the U.S.," said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei, quoted by the ISNA news agency on April 2.
Trump warned that if no agreement with Tehran was struck, Washington had "our eyes on key targets including the country's electric generating plants.”
The Iranian military command center Khatam Al-Anbiya put out a statement carried on state TV warning the U.S. and Israel to expect "more crushing, broader, and more destructive actions.”
"With trust in Almighty God, this war will continue until your humiliation, disgrace, permanent and certain regret and surrender," said the statement.
The latest attacks came as Jewish Israelis were celebrating Passover, which some were forced to do underground.
"This is not my first choice," said a writer who gave his name as Jeffrey, at a meal organized in a bunker in Tel Aviv.
"But at least in the shelter, we can sit here and just ride it out," he added.
Pro-government Iranians voiced defiance as they marched in Tehran at the funeral of a Revolutionary Guards naval commander killed in an Israeli strike.
