The United States (US) is reportedly weighing military options for a "final blow" against Iran that could include the use of ground forces and a massive bombing campaign, two US officials and two sources with knowledge told Axios on Thursday.
The report came days after US President Donald Trump announced "very good" talks with Iran to end the "hostilities". According to reports, Iran has also received a ceasefire proposal from the US via Pakistan.
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Tehran declined the proposal, and laid out five demands. At the same time, there were claims that the Pentagon is planning to deploy troops from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division in the Middle East.
Four major "final blow" options Now, in latest interviews with Axios, officials and sources described four major "final blow" options Trump could choose from. They are:
1. Invading or blockading Kharg Island, Iran's main oil export hub.
2. Invading Larak, an island that helps Iran solidify its control of the Strait of Hormuz. The strategic outpost hosts Iranian bunkers, attack craft that can blow up cargo ships and radars that monitor movements in the strait.
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3. Seizing the strategic island of Abu Musa and two smaller islands, which lie near the western entrance to the strait and are controlled by Iran but also claimed by the UAE.
4. Blocking or seizing ships that are exporting Iranian oil on the eastern side of the Hormuz Strait.
As per the report, the US military also prepared plans for ground operations deep inside the interior of Iran to secure the highly enriched uranium buried within nuclear facilities.
Instead of conducting such a complicated and risky operation, the US could instead carry out large-scale air strikes on the facilities to try to prevent Iran from ever accessing the material, the report claimed.
Trump is ready to escalate if... Axios reported that Trump has not made a decision yet on pursuing any of these scenarios. White House officials also described any potential ground operations as “hypothetical.”
But sources said Trump is ready to escalate if talks with Iran don't yield tangible results soon.
Trump could first implement his threat to bomb power plants and energy facilities in Iran, for which Tehran has threatened massive retaliation across the Gulf.
'Ready to unleash hell' White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt warned Iran on Wednesday that Trump is ready to strike "harder than ever before" if no deal can be reached.
"The President doesn't bluff, and he is ready to unleash hell. Iran shouldn't miscalculate again... any violence beyond this point will be because the Iranian regime... refuses to come to a deal," Leavitt said.
What Iran has said Iran has denied engaging in negotiations and talks with the US. Iranian officials told Axios they don't trust Trump's negotiation push and see it as a ruse to launch sneak attacks.
"...mistrust is the problem. The commanders of the IRGC are very skeptical," a source told Axios. "But the mediators haven't given up," they added.
Meanwhile, Speaker of parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on X on Wednesday that Iranian intelligence suggests "Iran's enemies, with the support of a country in the region, are preparing an operation to occupy one of Iran's islands."
Ghalibaf was likely alluding to the UAE and its claim to Abu Musa.