Trump threatens to 'blow the entire nation up' after Iran's 'painful strikes' warning

WASHINGTON, DC: Donald Trump’s push to end the Iran conflict ahead of the midterms appears to be entering a more heated phase, with the president warning he could “blow the entire nation up” if Tehran does not agree to a deal soon.

Following a conversation with the 80-year old president, Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst appeared on 'Fox & Friends Weekend' on Sunday, September 20, where he revealed that Trump is "deciding" on the possibility of escalating the war with Iran.

It comes after Tehran warned the US and Middle East regions that they will be targeted by “painful strikes” if they make “any mistake” against Iran.

Trump is in ‘deciding mode’ over ‘wiping Iran out’

“I just spoke with President Trump about the situation with Iran,” Yingst said from Tel Aviv, adding that Trump is in a “deciding mode” and “that very big things are going to be happening in the not-so-distant future.”

“The president described the current choices on the table as ‘wiping Iran out, letting them rot economically, or making a deal,” the journalist reported. “He added, ‘My question is, if and when do I blow the entire nation up? They better behave.’”

When asked if he is open to meeting Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian at next week’s UN General Assembly in New York, Trump maintained that he’d “‘probably be open to it,’ but described this weekend as ‘no different from any other weekend.’”

Back in the studio, host Charles Hurt asked whether Trump had clarified how soon he planned to take action.

According to Yingst, the Republican leader did not give a specific timeline and appeared uncertain about the prospects of reaching a deal, claiming that “some of the officials are hiding like rats” to avoid diplomatic efforts.

Trump’s war against Iran, which began with joint Israeli strikes on February 28, was initially expected to last just a few weeks, but even after seven months, the conflict is nowhere near the end despite Washington’s economic and military push.

Trump says Iran war is going to end right after midterm elections

Trump’s new warning came just a few days after he predicted that the war with Iran ​will end "immediately after" the midterm elections in ‌November because Tehran was trying to influence the vote but would not be able to hold out any longer in the face of US economic ​pressure.

"I think war is going to end immediately ​after the election because they can't hold out any ⁠longer. They're desperate to try and affect the election," ​he told reporters before departing for the Republican National Convention ​in Dallas.

With no end in sight, the US-Iran conflict has caused energy prices to skyrocket worldwide, pushing the national average for gas prices to $4.48 as of Sunday, according to AAA.

But Trump has frequently downplayed the high gas prices after long praising their lows prior to the initial strikes.

“It’s a very low price to pay for what we’ve done. Remember that. It’s a little more. Frankly, even if it was a lot more,” Trump said at a rally for Republican Senate nominee Michael Whatley in Gastonia, North Carolina, on Wednesday. “But that’s going to come tumbling down. That’s going to be like rocket ships in reverse.”