Iran threatens US bases in Europe if war resumes

Now Iran’s hardline leadership is devising and promoting its own strategy for continued confrontation with Washington.

Other countries in southeastern Europe such as Bulgaria, which approved US access to its Bezmer air base for refuelling last month, were also weighed up as a potential target for strikes.

Iran is rebuilding the upper ranks of its military and security establishment after months of wartime losses by turning largely to familiar veterans — figures whose careers in some cases stretch back to the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the Iran-Iraq War and previous domestic crackdowns.

The Iran war — defined by fits and starts and strain on America's military — will hit the half-year mark next week with both Washington and Tehran betting they can outlast one another.