Iran is now on ‘death ground’ amid existential threat from U.S. attacks and could ‘go big’ in retaliation, former NATO commander warns

With President Donald Trump calling for regime change in Iran, the country’s leadership now faces an existential threat and is likely to respond to U.S.-Israeli airstrikes accordingly, experts said.

So far, the Islamic Republic appears to be launching fewer missiles and drones in retaliation compared to its barrage in June 2025, when the U.S. joined Israel’s 12-day war on Iran to target nuclear facilities.

But retired Admiral James Stavridis, former NATO supreme allied commander, told CNN on Saturday that Iran has two options. One is to continue launching missiles at the current tempo and hunker down.

“Option two: if they truly believe they’re at the end of the string, they could go big and that would mean closing the Strait of Hormuz, conducting terrorist attacks against American diplomats, businessmen and citizens in the region and elsewhere,” he added. “They could unleash what’s left of their proxies, notably the Houthis who could try to shut down shipping again through the Suez Canal. So they have a lot of cards still to play.”

Energy analysts have warned that closing the Strait of Hormuz, through which about 20% of the world’s oil passes, could send Brent crude prices soaring to $100 a barrel.

Before the U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes, Iran conducted military exercises near the strait t...