{"id":10652,"date":"2026-10-22T12:26:34","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T12:26:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=10652"},"modified":"2026-10-22T12:26:34","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T12:26:34","slug":"iran-reveals-offensive-doctrine-us-issues-alert-is-war-imminent-explainer-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=10652","title":{"rendered":"Iran reveals \u2018offensive\u2019 doctrine, US issues alert: Is war imminent? | Explainer News"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says renewed attacks<\/a> by the United States could prompt Tehran to invade neighbouring countries and hit bases used in US military operations as part of its new \u201coffensive\u201d strategy.<\/p>\n

The warning on Wednesday came amid escalating attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a global energy chokepoint, and uncertainty over diplomatic efforts<\/a> to end the nearly eight-month war.<\/p>\n

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\u201cOur defence doctrine was previously defensive; we used to say that if a country attacks us, we will respond. Now we say that if a country attacks us, we will both respond and launch an offensive,\u201d IRGC spokesman Hossein Mohebi said.<\/p>\n

Washington ordered some diplomatic personnel to leave Saudi Arabia amid attacks from Yemen\u2019s Houthis while US President Donald Trump has signalled that a decision on the conflict could come soon.<\/p>\n

According to media reports, the US and Israel are planning potential attacks on Iran in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n

As negotiations seem stalled and both sides exchange threats, could the region be heading towards another military escalation?<\/p>\n

What is Iran\u2019s new doctrine?<\/h2>\n

The IRGC on Wednesday announced a shift towards an \u201coffensive and asymmetrical\u201d defence doctrine, threatening to invade countries that launch attacks against it.<\/p>\n

Mohebi said Tehran would no longer limit its military operations to retaliatory strikes.<\/p>\n

Mohebi stressed that Iran\u2019s missile stockpile has increased 1.5 times since the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June 2025. He did not provide specific figures.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe quality of the missiles has improved significantly, and their range, destructive power and accuracy in hitting targets have increased,\u201d the spokesman said.<\/p>\n

Moreover, Mohebi said Iranian forces were in the \u201cstage of preparing to unveil the \u2018father of all bombs\u2019. This is something new for the enemy.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, attacks in the Strait of Hormuz continued unabated.<\/p>\n

The IRGC\u2019s navy said on Thursday that four vessels it accused of being involved in illegal oil transfers were struck and caught fire in the northern Gulf. Three other vessels hit mines west of the strait, it added.<\/p>\n

Before the war, one-fifth of the world\u2019s oil and natural gas supplies passed through the Strait of Hormuz. While shipments through the strait are still below those levels, oil shipments from the region returned to pre-war levels last month as exporters found alternative ways to ship out their oil and gas, including using pipelines.<\/p>\n

However, a flurry of recent attacks in the key waterway and the fighting between Yemen\u2019s Houthis and its Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government, which has resulted in Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, have once again sent oil prices surging. Brent crude climbed above $110 a barrel on Thursday amid fears of further disruptions to regional energy supplies.<\/p>\n

Why the shift?<\/h2>\n

Iran\u2019s shift towards an offensive military doctrine reflects Tehran\u2019s determination to make future US-Israeli attacks significantly more costly, according to analysts.<\/p>\n

Negar Mortazavi, senior fellow at the Centre for International Policy, told Al Jazeera that Tehran was drawing lessons from the wars of 2025 and 2026 after its previous strategy of retaliation failed to prevent repeated attacks.<\/p>\n

\u201cTehran now wants to establish a new equation: Any future attack on Iran will come at a much higher cost for the aggressors,\u201d she told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

Unable to match conventional US military capabilities, Iran is increasingly relying on asymmetric warfare, including missiles, drones and its leverage over the Strait of Hormuz, Mortazavi explained.<\/p>\n

She said Tehran was pursuing a broader strategy aimed at imposing military, economic and political costs on Washington, including potentially influencing the November 3 US midterm elections.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIran wants to teach Washington a lesson: Attacking Iran comes with a high price, one that can even cost elections,\u201d Mortazavi said, referring to US surveys that are predicting electoral losses for Trump\u2019s Republican Party.<\/p>\n

She added that Iranian officials were closely monitoring the elections, believing the economic fallout from the war could damage the Republican Party\u2019s prospects of retaining control of Congress.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe long-term objective is to establish deterrence so that future American administrations think twice before daring to attack Iran again,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Political analyst Rami Khouri said the doctrine was also intended to ensure that the consequences of attacks extend to the US, Israel and regional countries supporting their military operations.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s one part of the strategy, that the suffering and the damage have to be equal and reciprocal,\u201d Khouri, nonresident senior fellow at the Arab Center, told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

Khouri argued that Tehran was also seeking to challenge what it views as longstanding Western domination of the region.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Iranians are actually working to try to end the colonial period,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He added that Iran\u2019s strategy could extend the economic consequences of conflict far beyond the Middle East, affecting energy supplies, transportation, insurance costs and shipments of essential goods.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe pain is going to go way beyond just the Middle East and Israel and the US and will hurt people in other parts of the world,\u201d Khouri said.<\/p>\n

What has the US said about resuming the war?<\/span><\/h2>\n

Trump has offered conflicting signals about Washington\u2019s next steps.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, he said the US was no longer negotiating with Tehran and suggested developments were imminent. \u201cWe are going to have something one way or the other that\u2019ll happen fairly soon,\u201d he told reporters.<\/p>\n

He also said Washington could end the war immediately but wanted a lasting outcome. \u201cIt\u2019ll end very soon. We could leave now, but we want to make sure it lasts for a long time,\u201d Trump said at a campaign rally in South Carolina.<\/p>\n

Trump previously pledged not to attack Iran before the November 3 elections.<\/p>\n

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said this week that reaching a peace agreement is extremely difficult and insisted that Iran must stop targeting commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n

In recent weeks, Iran\u2019s enrichment of uranium has re-emerged as a point of contention<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Rubio has maintained that Washington will reject any agreement allowing Iran to develop nuclear weapons, which require highly enriched uranium. \u201cThe United States will not support any deal that creates a pathway for Iran to ever have a nuclear weapon,\u201d he said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

Tehran insisted its right to enrichment is guaranteed under the Non-Proliferation Treaty.<\/p>\n

Iran has offered a seven-day plan to restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for Washington ending its blockade of Iranian ports, easing sanctions and unfreezing Iranian assets.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the US Department of State on Wednesday ordered nonemergency personnel and their families to leave Saudi Arabia after recent Houthi attacks.<\/p>\n

The US embassy in Riyadh has warned of further attacks while American officials told the Reuters news agency that family members could be withdrawn from other Gulf missions.<\/p>\n

State Department spokesman Tommy Piggott said departure orders for mission personnel across the Gulf have not been ordered, saying the current orders were for \u201cemployees and their family members in Saudi Arabia only\u201d.<\/p>\n

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated on Sunday his pledge to topple Iran\u2019s government, saying it was key to preventing it from rebuilding its nuclear programme and the \u201caxis of resistance\u201d, further raising prospects of an escalation.<\/p>\n

Netanyahu made the comments as Israel\u2019s longest-serving prime minister is locked in a tough battle to remain in power in Tuesday\u2019s elections.<\/p>\n

Is war imminent?<\/h2>\n

Analysts warned that renewed US-Israeli attacks on Iran are increasingly possible with both sides preparing for another confrontation despite the continued possibility of diplomacy.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother round of war seems to be approaching,\u201d Mortazavi said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBoth sides appear to be preparing for renewed confrontation while escalating tensions in the Strait of Hormuz increase the risk of a wider conflict,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Mortazavi added that the elections in the next two weeks in the US and Israel could influence the timing of military action but warned that the current trajectory appeared to favour escalation over negotiations.<\/p>\n

Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran\u2019s Supreme National Security Council, on Wednesday said, \u201cEveryone must know that any action against Iran comes at a cost.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf diplomacy can create this understanding, we prefer diplomacy, but if the war continues, Iran has the necessary means to sustain its response,\u201d Rezaei said, according to the IRNA news agency.<\/p>\n

Echoing Mortazavi, Khouri warned that another confrontation could be approaching although he said US threats might still be part of a negotiating strategy.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think imminent conflict is on the cards, but I don\u2019t know if war is the right word to use,\u201d Khouri told Al Jazeera.<\/p>\n

He said renewed strikes could target Iran\u2019s critical infrastructure, including electricity networks, transportation systems, bridges and essential services.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re probably going to get some severe attacks on a few targets that will try to make life in Iran very difficult,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

However, Khouri cautioned that Iran\u2019s ability to withstand another major military offensive while inflicting comparable damage on its adversaries remained uncertain.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not clear if Iran has the ability to withstand major new assaults against it,\u201d he said, while stressing that Tehran was unlikely to surrender to military pressure.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says renewed attacks by the United States could prompt Tehran to invade neighbouring countries and hit bases used in US military operations as part of its new \u201coffensive\u201d strategy. The warning on Wednesday came amid escalating attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a global energy chokepoint, and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10653,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_templately_pack_id":"","_templately_imported_at":"","_templately_source":"","_templately_import_session_id":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10652","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-international-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t