Iran has warned Donald Trump "to be careful not to be eliminated" after the US President vowed to unleash "death, fire and fury".
Tehran's security chief Ali Larijani issued the sinister claim after dismissing Mr Trump's rhetoric as "empty threats".
He said: "Even those greater than you could not eliminate the Iranian nation. Take care of yourself not to be eliminated!"
Mr Trump has faced a number of threats from operatives connected with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Pakistani national Asif Merchant, 47, was imprisoned on March 7 after attempting to hire a hitman during the 2024 US Presidential Election.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth last week confirmed an Iranian official who spearheaded a separate assassination attempt on Mr Trump had been killed by the military.
Mr Hegseth said: "The leader of the unit who attempted to assassinate President Trump has been hunted down and killed.
"Iran tried to kill President Trump, and President Trump got the last laugh."
Iran has warned Donald Trump 'to be careful not to be eliminated'
|REUTERS
Mr Trump survived an assassination attempt in 2024 while holding a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.
The US President, who was at the time seeking a second non-consecutive term in the Oval Office, sustained a gunshot wound to the ear after 20-year-old Thomas Crooks fired eight rounds from an AR-15 rifle.
However, recent US strikes against Tehran have resulted in the deaths of high-profile members of the IRGC.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed on February 28, with his successor Mojtaba Khamenei being injured in the aerial bombardment.
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US War Secretary Pete Hegseth outlined Donald Trump's three strategic aims in Iran being 'executed with ruthless precision'
|REUTERS
Tehran's Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, Chief of General Staff Abdolrahim Mousavi and IRGC Commander Mohammad Pakpour were also killed last month.
The US will today launch a fresh wave of strikes since embarking on the joint operation with Israel.
Mr Hegseth said: "Today will be yet again our most intense day of strikes inside Iran."
He added: "We will not relent until the enemy is totally and decisively defeated."
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei died on February 28
| GETTUThe update came just hours after Mr Trump concluded a set of mixed messages by vowing to unleash "death, fire, and fury" on Tehran.
In a Truth Social post, the US President said: "If Iran does anything that stops the flow of oil within the Strait of Hormuz, they will be hit by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they have been hit thus far.
"Additionally, we will take out easily destroyable targets that will make it virtually impossible for Iran to ever be built back, as a Nation, again - death, fire, and fury will reign upon them.
"But I hope, and pray, that it does not happen. This is a gift from the United States of America to China, and all of those nations that heavily use the Hormuz Strait."
US and Israeli warplanes have struck oil facilities across Iran
| GETTYThe post sparked some confusion as it came just hours after Mr Trump declared the war was "very complete" in just 10 days.
Iranian state media responded with a bizarre Lego-themed clip showing a barrage of strikes targeting the US embassy in Saudi Arabia, an American military base in Bahrain, and Benjamin Netanyahu’s office.
The video, shared by the IRGC-controlled Tasnim News Agency, also showed rockets hitting a Lego version of Dubai's Burj Al Arab hotel.
Iranian gunboats are even shown closing the Strait of Hormuz, leaving suited figurines crying at the price of oil.