Trump fumes and says he is ‘cutting off all trade with Spain’ – live

A furious Donald Trump has said he will cut all ties with Spain after the country denied the US permission to use their shared bases to launch attacks against Iran.

The US President also lashed out at Sir Keir Starmer, saying ‘it is not quite Winston Churchill we’re dealing with’, before adding: ‘We’re going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don’t want anything to do with Spain’.

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Iranians have been sent threatening text messages warning them not to protest.

The IRGC has told citizens they will face consequences if they go into the streets.

According to NBC, one text message reads: ‘With condolences on the martyrdom of Imam Khamenei and in the hope of Iran’s victory, the heroic nation is informed that, given the bloodthirsty enemy’s plan for terrorist actions and street riots as a next step after bombing certain military and police sites, any movement disturbing security will be considered direct cooperation with the enemy and will be met with the firm fist of your children in the IRGC Intelligence Organisation.’

Thousands of Iranians were slaughtered during anti-regime protests in January.

Emmanuel Macron has said France will send a warship to Cyprus alongside extra air defences in further ‘defensive’ measures.

The French President said France needs to ‘stand alongside our friends and allies in the region’, adding the country’s ‘responsibility is strictly defensive’.

The frigate will arrive off the coast of Cyprus this evening.

‘We are aiming to restore peace as quickly as possible,’ he added.

Macron earlier told the president of Cyprus he was dispatching two frigates to the island, after a request for aid.

That prompted action from Keir Starmer, who eventually ordered a Royal Navy warship to set sail to Cyprus to defend UK bases.

Spain has hit back at Donald Trump after he said he was going to cut all ties with the country because of their refusal to allow the US to use their bases to attack Iran.

The US President said Spain had been ‘terrible’, adding: ‘We’re going to cut off all trade with Spain. We don’t want anything to do with Spain’.

Trump also criticised the country for failing to follow its Nato allies in raising defence spending to five per cent.

In response Spain said: ‘We have the necessary resources to contain the possible impact of the trade embargo by the US.’

In a statement, it added: ‘The US must comply with international law and bilateral EU-US trade agreements.’

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Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will be buried in the holy city of Mashhad, Iranian state media has reported.

Khamenei, who presided over a brutal regime in Iran for 36 years, was killed on Saturday morning after joint US-Israel strikes.

The Supreme Leader’s wife, daughter, grandchild, daughter-in-law and son-in-law were also killed in the strikes.

Iran initially denied his death but declared 40 days of national mourning.

He will be buried in Mashhad, the city of his birth.

It is not known when his funeral will take place but he will be buried after a large memorial ceremony held in Tehran.

Buzzing like a motorcycle and appearing low over the horizon, the kamikaze Shahed-136 drone is the Iranian regime’s last hope.

In its death throes, the theocracy has so far fired off more than 500 drones against nine neighboring countries, hitting targets that could not be predicted, and igniting chaos across the Middle East.

No one – apart from perhaps the CIA or Israel’s Mossad – knows exactly how big the Iranian drone arsenal is, but it is far more than its limited supply of larger ballistic missiles and launchers.

The US State Department confirmed it is securing flights for Americans stuck in the Middle East.

‘The State Department is actively securing military aircraft and charter flights for American citizens who wish to leave the Middle East,’ Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson wrote on X.

‘We’ve been in direct contact with nearly 3,000 Americans abroad. American citizens should call 1-202-501-4444 for assistance with departure options.’

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reiterated that stance.

‘The United States State Department is actively working on plans to help Americans in the Middle East return home,’ she wrote on X.

‘If you are a US Citizen in the region, please register at step.state.gov.’

Pete Hegseth took to X on Tuesday to confirm that the United States was not forced to attack Iran as a result of Israel’s pressure.

‘No… Based on the way the negotiation was going, I think [Iran] was going to attack first, and I didn’t want that to happen — so if anything, I might’ve forced Israel’s hand’ President Trump said on Tuesday afternoon.

Hegseth quoted the clip and wrote ‘This is 100% correct.’

The RAF has confirmed it has shot down jets over Jordan as ‘part of a defensive operation to protect British interests and allies’.

The Ministry of Defence said RAF F-35B jets, supported by RAF Typhoon jets and a Voyager, shot down a drone.

British forces also took down drones in Iraqi airspace which were heading towards ‘Coalition forces’.

The MoD said the action was ‘taken in defence of our personnel and allies operating in the area’.

An RAF Typhoon also shot down an Iranian attack drone directed at Qatar. The jet was operating as part of a joint UK-Qatar squadron

Sires have sounded across Tel Aviv and central and northern Israel following long-range missile fire from Lebanon.

It marks the first long-range rockets fired by Hezbollah since the outbreak of the current conflict.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese government has reportedly arrested 12 members of Hezbollah.

It came after Lebanon’s government banned military activities by Hezbollah on Monday.

The terror group launched a series of missiles against Israel, prompting retaliatory strikes from the IDF across Lebanon, including at the capital Beirut.

Donald Trump advised Iranians not to protest ‘yet.’

‘If you’re going to go out and protest, don’t do it yet. It’s very dangerous out there. A lot of bombs are being dropped,’ he said.