Iran's daring plan to seize US base, kidnap American soldiers could spark total war
Story highlights
As Iran and the United States intensify military strikes and exchange threats, a proposal by an Iranian lawmaker to seize a US military base and capture American soldiers has fuelled fears of a wider regional war.
The two sides are not just exchanging fire. They are also exchanging warnings, signals and messages that could shape the next phase of the conflict. The biggest question now is what comes next.
Will Iran escalate further? Could it directly target a US military base? Or is there still room to avoid a wider regional war?
One statement has added to those concerns.
Former Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki, who is now a member of Iran's parliament, has called for a ground assault on a US military base in the region and the capture of 100 Americans.
According to Iranian media reports, Mottaki said, "My proposal is that we launch a ground attack on one of the US bases in the region, capture 100 Americans and bring them to Iran."
His remarks come as calls for retaliation continue to grow louder in Iran.
The messaging has also become increasingly symbolic.
Images showing US President Donald Trump inside a coffin have surfaced, reflecting the growing calls for revenge. During funeral ceremonies for late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, banners, chants and red flags carried anti US and anti Israel messages, signalling that public rhetoric has only intensified.
Yet even within Iran's political establishment, there are differing views on how retaliation should be pursued.
Iranian lawmaker Shahrokh Ramin criticised a parliamentary proposal titled "Revenge against Trump", arguing that revenge is not something that can be achieved through legislation.
He said, "Someone who wants to take revenge does not turn it into a law. Someone who does these things certainly does not want the action to happen."
"If we are truly seeking revenge, we take revenge, and the way to do it is not through legislation," he added.
"When the Americans wanted to strike us, they did not pass a law."
Even as military tensions continue to escalate, another development has raised fresh questions.
Iran released a US citizen during the latest round of hostilities, a move that US President Donald Trump described as a "Gesture of goodwill."
Over decades of confrontation, the release of US citizens held in Iran has often been handled through behind-the-scenes contacts, even when formal diplomacy remained suspended.
The latest release has therefore prompted speculation over whether it signals an attempt to keep limited communication channels open despite the fighting.
On the battlefield, however, both sides continue to intensify military operations.
For the first time since the memorandum of understanding paused fighting last month, the United States launched two major waves of air strikes in a single day on Wednesday, targeting several locations near Iran's southern coast.
Iran responded with missiles and drones aimed at US military bases in neighbouring countries, including a major barrage targeting an expanded American air base in Jordan.
Iran also claimed to have shot down an MQ 9 Reaper drone, while US strikes targeted multiple locations inside Iran, with a children's cancer treatment facility also reportedly affected.
Tehran has also repeated that the Strait of Hormuz remains a red line.
Iran has warned that if the United States carries out threats to attack Iranian infrastructure, it will respond by targeting Gulf infrastructure.
With military action intensifying, warnings growing stronger, and both sides appearing willing to push the limits of escalation, the question remains whether the latest signals are opening the door to diplomacy or taking the region one step closer to a much wider war.
