Former US President and convict Donald Trump has called on "Israel" to strike Iran's nuclear facilities in response to the retaliatory operation carried out on October 1, which targeted military bases and sites in response to the Israeli assassination of martyrs Ismail Haniyeh, Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, and Iranian General Abbas Nilforooshan. 

During a town hall event in North Carolina, Trump said Joe Biden should have responded to questions about the nature of an Israeli attack against Iran by advocating for the bombardment of Iran's nuclear facilities. 

"When they asked [Biden] him that question, the answer should have been: 'hit the nuclear first and worry about the rest later,'" he said. 

Biden had previously expressed aversion and disapproval of the targeting of nuclear assets, fearing further escalation, retaliation, and the ignition of an all-out regional war. 

Read more: Russia concerned over Israeli signs of possibly striking Iran: Ryabkov

Iranian VP: War not our goal, but our response will be crushing

In light of the constant threats, Iran's First Vice President, Mohammad Reza Aref, articulated the nation's stance on foreign threats, asserting that while Iran remains patient and does not seek war, it is prepared to react decisively to any acts of aggression.

Aref stressed that the country’s forthcoming responses would be "crushing and devastating," underlining Iran's commitment to safeguarding its sovereignty against even the most minor provocations from its adversaries.

The Iranian Vice President called on those he accused of instigating occupation in the region to think critically and stop their harmful actions that support the occupation.
 
The deputy chief of the Iranian Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC), Brigadier General Ali Fadavi, issued a stern warning to "Israel", stating that any misstep by the entity would endanger its very existence.

Speaking to Sputnik earlier this week, former Iranian Ambassador to Germany Seyed Hossein Mousavian warned that any attack against Iran's nuclear assets would transform the country from a "threshold nuclear state" to a full-on "nuclear state".