Iran warns US of wider war as tanker is hit near Strait of Hormuz

Iran's Revolutionary Guard warned on Monday that it would "change the geography of the war" if the United States escalates the conflict, as fresh tensions were reported across the Middle East. The warning came as the British military said an "unknown projectile" hit a tanker entering the Strait of Hormuz, injuring two crew members, while the Israeli military stayed on alert during Yom Kippur.

The latest developments also included a sharp rise in casualties and displacement in Yemen, a French protest over the closure of a French language centre in Tehran, and the postponement of the Red Sea International Film Festival in Saudi Arabia until late 2027.

Hossein Mohebbi, a spokesperson for Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, said "the war is not over" and warned that Iran would change its weapons, military tactics and targets if the conflict with the US deepens. He said the Guard had prepared for a long-term war.

"We will certainly change the geography of the war," Mohebbi said in a statement carried by Iranian state media. "We will certainly bring new weapons with new capabilities into the battle." He added, according to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, that "our targets will no longer necessarily be the same as before" and said Iran has targets that have not yet been struck. The more than six-month war began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 and has since seen repeated attacks and attempts to negotiate an end to the fighting, with no agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or revive talks over Iran's nuclear programme.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre said a tanker was struck by an "unknown projectile" as it headed into the Strait of Hormuz. Two crew members suffered minor injuries, and the vessel was continuing to its next port of call under its own power. No environmental impact was reported. Tehran has asserted control over much of the strait since the US and Israel launched the war on February 28. In peacetime, about 20 million barrels, roughly a fifth of the world's oil supply, passed through Hormuz each day, though traffic remains well below earlier levels.

In Yemen, the World Health Organization said 680 people were killed or injured in a week as fighting continued between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Saudi-backed government forces. In a post on X, the WHO said 164 people were killed and 516 injured between September 13 and September 18. It said the total number of casualties since August 6 had risen to 3,672, including 674 deaths and 2,998 injuries. Lahj province in south-western Yemen remains an active front line, with 58 deaths and 226 injuries reported within six days.

The International Organization for Migration said the fighting has displaced 129,438 people across seven provinces in only a few weeks, with many forced to flee more than once. Othman Belbeisi, the IOM's regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, said 11,352 people were displaced in only three days from September 18.

In Israel, the military remained on guard as the country marked Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement and the holiest day in Judaism. Streets were largely empty, streetlights blinked yellow, and worshippers walked to the Western Wall in Jerusalem's Old City. "For the next 25 hours, Israel is offline," the foreign ministry said on X after sundown on Sunday. The military said it had bolstered frontline forces after an Israeli settler was killed on Sunday in the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian suspect was detained after a search.

France said it would summon Iran's ambassador to protest the closure of a French language centre linked to the French Embassy in Tehran. The French Foreign Ministry said Paris would "take appropriate measures in response" without giving details on timing. It called the closure "unjustifiable and unacceptable" and described it as a new attack on France's cultural presence in Iran, linking it to an assault on two French Embassy staff members in July.

Organisers of the Red Sea International Film Festival said this year's event had been rescheduled for late 2027. The foundation did not connect the move to the security situation and said in an Instagram post that the decision was based on the timing and logistical requirements of staging an international event of its scale. The festival, held in Jeddah, is one of Saudi Arabia's best-known international cultural events.

The latest round of developments underlined the spread of the conflict's effects across the region, from Iran's warning and disruption in the Strait of Hormuz to casualties and displacement in Yemen, continued military alertness in Israel, diplomatic tensions between France and Iran, and the delay of a major cultural event in Saudi Arabia.