Iran vows it will not surrender even if it is bombed, transfers S-300 to protect nuclear reactor

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Thursday that Tehran will not surrender to US pressure and will not give up on its goals even if it is bombed, stepping up the war of words between the Islamic Republic and the United States.

Earlier in the day, Iran’s top military chief said the standoff between Tehran and Washington was a “clash of wills”, threatening that any enemy “adventurism” would meet a crushing response, the semi-official Fars news agency reported.

Iranian trucks carrying S-300 air defense systems were seen heading towards Asaluyeh, in the southern coastal province of Bushehr.

Bushehr is the site of Iran’s main nuclear reactor.

Tensions are festering between the two countries after Washington sent more military forces to the Middle East in a show of force against Iranian threats to its troops and interests in the region.

The US Department of Defense was expected to present plans to the White House on Thursday for thousands of troops to be deployed as reinforcements in the Middle East.

Acting U.S. Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan on Thursday confirmed that the Pentagon was considering sending yet further U.S. troops to the Middle East as one of the ways to bolster protection for American forces there.

Pictures showing Iranian paramilitary forces loading missiles onto small boats, amid concern that the Revolutionary Guards terror group would fire them at US navy vessels, are behind a recent sharp escalation between the US and Iran.

President Trump said Sunday that war would be “the official end of Iran.”

“If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran. Never threaten the United States again!” President Trump tweeted Sunday night.

Trump’s warning came shortly after a rocket exploded close to the US embassy in Baghdad in the Iraqi capital’s Green Zone.