A senior Iranian defense official says the armed forces have “trained in asymmetrical warfare” for two decades in anticipation of American troops being deployed to “designated regions.”
“We have been waiting for the arrival of Americans to designated regions,” Ali-Akbar Ahmadian, a senior aide to Leader of the Islamic Revolution in the Defense Council, said in a post on his X account on Tuesday.
“For more than two decades, we have trained for this moment with the strategy of asymmetrical warfare,” he wrote.
Ahmadian said that Iran has only one message for American soldiers: “Come closer.”
The warning comes as Trump administration officials have hinted at the possibility of ground operations in certain regions of Iran.
IRGC Navy orders container ship to leave Strait of Hormuz for lacking permit https://t.co/OhnnscMKxR
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US military planners have reportedly presented the White House with options for a potential ground operation, should the bombing campaign fail to achieve its objectives.
According to The Wall Street Journal, discussions have included scenarios involving “boots on the ground” to dismantle Iran's nuclear infrastructure and missile capabilities.
Pentagon officials have also acknowledged planning for "contingency operations" that could involve special operations forces or heliborne assaults on key Iranian facilities, though they stress such options remain a last resort.
The commander of the Ground Force of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) warned earlier in the day that any such threat or act of aggression would be met with a crushing response.
Speaking to IRGC ground troops in the southwestern province of Khuzestan, Brigadier General Mohammad Karami said his unit was prepared at the highest level.