'Massive fleet heading towards Iran': Trump renews warning to Tehran
US President Donald Trump said American warships are moving towards Iran as tensions rise over protests and nuclear concerns, adding the US is ready to act if Tehran escalates
 "'Massive fleet heading towards Iran': Trump renews warning to Tehran")
US President Donald Trump said that the United States has an “armada” moving toward Iran, renewing warnings to Tehran over the killing of protesters and concerns about a possible restart of its nuclear programme.
Trump made the remarks on Thursday while returning to the US after attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said, “We have a lot of ships going that direction, just in case... I'd rather not see anything happen, but we're watching them very closely.”
He added, "But we have an armada. We have a massive fleet heading in that direction, and maybe we won’t have to use it. We’ll see.”
News agency Reuters quoted US officials as saying that the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and several guided-missile destroyers are expected to reach West Asia in the coming days. One official said the US is also considering deploying additional air-defence systems to the region. These would help protect American bases in case of any Iranian attack.
Claims on protester executions
Trump has repeatedly threatened action against Iran over the killing of protesters. However, protests appeared to slow last week, and Trump claimed that Iran had halted executions after his warnings.
He repeated that claim on Thursday, saying Iran had cancelled nearly 840 hangings. “I said: 'If you hang those people, you're going to be hit harder than you've ever been hit. It'll make what we did to your Iran nuclear (programme) look like peanuts'," Trump said.
He added that Iran stopped the executions shortly before they were to take place, calling it “a good sign".
On Iran's nuclear programme, Trump warned that the US would strike again if Tehran restarted its programme. “If they try to do it again, they have to go to another area. We'll hit them there too, just as easily,” he said.
Trump repeats Iran claims at Davos
While speaking at the World Economic Forum, Trump said he had resolved eight wars since returning to office. Referring to Iran, he said US strikes last June had “obliterated” its nuclear capacity and claimed Tehran “does want to talk, and will talk”.
He also spoke about US operations against ISIL in Syria, saying “many good things are happening”, and claimed threats to Europe, the US and West Asia were easing.
“Just one year ago, the world was actually on fire,” he said. “A lot of people didn't know about it.”
Trump’s comments came days after he warned that Iran would be wiped “off the face of this earth” if it ever succeeded in assassinating him. In a News Nation interview aired on Tuesday, he said, “I have very firm instructions. Anything happens, they're going to wipe them off the face of this earth.”
Iran protests
The protests began on December 28 at Tehran’s Grand Bazaar over economic hardship and quickly spread across the country.
The US-based HRANA rights group said it has verified 4,519 deaths linked to the unrest, including 4,251 protesters. Another 9,049 deaths are still being reviewed.
An Iranian official told Reuters that the confirmed death toll stood at more than 5,000 as of Sunday, including 500 members of the security forces.
(With agency inputs)