{"id":2697486,"date":"2026-11-04T00:24:01","date_gmt":"2026-11-04T05:24:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/iran-more-likely-to-strike-europe-if-trump-attacks\/"},"modified":"2026-11-04T00:31:47","modified_gmt":"2026-11-04T05:31:47","slug":"iran-more-likely-to-strike-europe-if-trump-attacks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/iran-more-likely-to-strike-europe-if-trump-attacks\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran More Likely to Strike Europe if Trump Attacks"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Firan-more-likely-to-strike-europe-if-trump-attacks%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2697486&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Teh midterm elections are finished, Democrats won control of both chambers, and Donald Trump suffered a political setback. That raises an urgent question: will Trump restart a costly, illegal, and widely unpopular military campaign against Iran-a conflict he largely set aside during the campaign?<\/p>\n<p>Experts warn that if he does, Iran would retaliate fiercely. Tehran has threatened to broaden its targets beyond energy and military sites to include digital infrastructure like subsea cables and data centers. That threat is a key reason the author doubts Trump will approve the \u201cdevastating strikes\u201d Israel\u2019s prime minister has pushed for-although the Pentagon is moving forces into the region and Trump has suggested aggressive action is possible. If those strikes do happen, Iran would likely respond, and the damage could extend well beyond the Gulf.<\/p>\n<p>Iranian officials have warned that any country that helps attacks on iran risks being struck in turn. Analysts such as Ellie Geranmayeh of the European Council on Foreign Relations say Tehran appears intent on widening the conflict to amplify global consequences. Sina Toossi of the Center for International Policy notes European bases reportedly used to support operations against Iran could be viewed by Tehran as legitimate targets.<\/p>\n<p>Statements from Iran\u2019s leadership reinforce that possibility. Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei reportedly told commanders to remove \u201cgeographical limitations\u201d from their retaliation plans, and other officials have signaled a willingness to strike farther afield. Some state media and former officials have explicitly suggested Europe could be targeted; Iranian reporting even claims missiles capable of reaching the UK. Unconfirmed reports earlier in the war suggested Iran tried to strike as far as Diego Garcia-if true,that demonstrates an increased missile range that could put much of continental Europe in reach.<\/p>\n<p>Western reporting has identified potential European targets, including southeastern bases such as Bulgaria\u2019s Bezmer air base and a British facility in Cyprus. Iranian leaders have named countries like Germany,Italy,Portugal,and the UK-places that host U.S. bases or have supported operations against Iran-as possible targets. Long-range strikes would face accuracy limits, but Iran could also operate through proxies-militias in iraq or Hezbollah-which have already launched iranian-made drones at targets in Cyprus.<\/p>\n<p>Tehran\u2019s strategy is designed to deter U.S. attacks by raising the potential costs, but it could backfire: attacks on Europe might prompt its governments to enter the conflict directly, reducing the deterrent effect. Conversely, the threat could make European leaders more reluctant to allow their territory or bases to be used for U.S. strikes-many may now think twice about enabling a U.S. campaign that has no clear exit strategy.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier in the conflict Iran struck U.S. bases in the Persian Gulf to push back American presence. If fighting resumes, Iran could extend its campaign to europe to further repel U.S. operations. The war has already harmed Europe economically, triggering an energy shock that strains budgets and fuels domestic unrest. still, many European leaders have so far allowed U.S. use of bases; NATO\u2019s secretary-general even cited thousands of U.S. sorties flown from Europe.<\/p>\n<p>American voters, in the author\u2019s view, rejected a war that hurt their finances without improving their security.The piece ends by asking when European leaders-whose publics have suffered critically important economic pain and would face serious risks from wider conflict-will likewise refuse to let their countries become launch points for such a war.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"c-blog-post__content s-wysiwyg s-wysiwyg--blog\">\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:30px;\" id=\"elevenlabs-audionative-widget\" data-height=\"90\" data-width=\"100%\" data-frameborder=\"no\" data-scrolling=\"no\" data-publicuserid=\"cb0d9922301244fcc1aeafd0610a8e90a36a320754121ee126557a7416405662\" data-playerurl=\"https:\/\/elevenlabs.io\/player\/index.html\" >Loading the <a href=\"https:\/\/elevenlabs.io\/text-to-speech\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Elevenlabs Text to Speech<\/a> AudioNative Player&#8230;<\/div>\n<p><script src=\"https:\/\/elevenlabs.io\/player\/audioNativeHelper.js\" type=\"text\/javascript\"><\/script>                            <\/p>\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap wp-block-paragraph\">Well, the midterm elections are over, and the GOP got walloped\u2014bigly. Now that voters have handed the Democratic Party both chambers of Congress\u2014and handed Donald Trump a stinging rebuke\u2014we can focus again on the most urgent question facing our republic-turned-predatory-empire: Will our imperial president renew his costly, illegal, and deeply unpopular war against Iran, which he wisely, though to little avail, had put on the backburner during the campaign season?<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If he does, analysts warn, Iran will mount a furious retaliation. The Islamic Republic has threatened to expand its target set to include digital infrastructure like internet cables and data centers, in addition to energy sites and military assets. That\u2019s the main reason I\u2019ve been skeptical, even amid myriad escalation signals, that Trump will authorize the \u201cdevastating strikes\u201d that Israel\u2019s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/8505c9d9-bb41-4052-a3dd-874dc9a509b1?syn-25a6b1a6=1\">has been urging<\/a>. Still, the Pentagon has been moving troops and materiel into the region, and Trump continues to hint that he\u2019ll throw the \u201chammer\u201d down. So what happens if I\u2019m wrong?<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Gulf states would probably get wrecked. And not just the Gulf states, perhaps. The Islamic Republic is growing ever more prepared, should Trump launch major strikes, to take aim at America\u2019s European allies, Iran experts told <em>The American Conservative<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>                         <!-- \/22404337467,3946880\/theamericanconservative-Leaderboard-Top -->                         <\/p>\n<div id='div-gpt-ad-1742316429780-0' style='min-width: 300px; min-height: 50px; max-width: 100%; '>                         <\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIran has explicitly warned that in a next round of war with the U.S., any country that facilitates those attacks will expose itself to Iranian counterattacks,\u201d said Ellie Geranmayeh, an Iran expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations. \u201cTehran is looking to spread the war more horizontally to compound the global pain.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sina Toossi, a senior non-resident fellow at the Center for International Policy, said he had been tracking recent Iranian threats and takes seriously the possibility of an attack on Europe. \u201cEuropean bases have reportedly been used to support operations against Iran, including British facilities,\u201d Toossi observed. \u201cSo Tehran may increasingly see these bases as legitimate targets.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These expert analyses add to the accumulating evidence that Iran\u2014if war resumes and especially if the next phase of fighting is intense and lasts a long while\u2014will expand the conflict beyond the Middle East and into Europe. On Saturday, Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theamericanconservative.com\/iran-war-day-246-irans-leader-orders-no-limits-retaliation-if-attacked\/\">instructed<\/a> military commanders to drop any \u201cgeographical limitations\u201d to their retaliatory strike plans, according to a statement released by his office. The same day, Iran\u2019s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi issued a pointed criticism of Friedrich Merz, the chancellor of Germany, for having initially endorsed the American-Israeli attacks. \u201cRed lines,\u201d Araghchi cautioned, \u201care a thing of the past.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Those warnings, though stark, are nonetheless cryptic, but pro-regime Iranian journalists <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/aghplt\/status\/2116635389519626368\">assessed<\/a> that the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ayatollah-iran-in-no-hurry-to-see-u-s-return-to-nuclear-deal\/\" title=\"Ayatollah: Iran in no hurry to see U.S. return to nuclear deal\">supreme leader<\/a> was readying a possible attack on Europe, and lower-level officials have made the subtext explicit. After news broke of Khamenei\u2019s instructions, Manouchehr Mottaki, an Iranian lawmaker and former foreign minister, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rferl.org\/amp\/iran-europe-target-missile-range\/33888908.html\">predicted<\/a> the next round of war \u201cwill reach Europe.\u201d Iranian media <a href=\"https:\/\/iranwire.com\/en\/news\/159731-iranian-state-newspaper-maps-us-military-bases-in-europe-as-potential-targets\/#google_vignette\">suggested<\/a> Tehran possesses missiles that can reach as far as the UK.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Indeed, early in the war, Iran was reported to have fired an intercontinental ballistic missile toward a U.S.-UK airbase in Diego Garcia, an island in the Indian Ocean. If true (and, granted, the report was never confirmed), the episode <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sipri.org\/commentary\/topical-backgrounder\/2026\/what-does-reported-attack-diego-garcia-tell-us-about-irans-missile-capabilities-qa-dr-markus\">demonstrated<\/a> Iran\u2019s capability to launch missiles with a range of nearly 4,000 kilometers (around 2,500 miles), nearly doubling its previous self-imposed range limitation\u2014and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rferl.org\/a\/iran-europe-target-missile-range\/33888908.html\">putting<\/a> most of continental Europe in Tehran\u2019s crosshairs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While the risks of Iranian attacks on Europe remain underdiscussed, Western media has done some good reporting on the matter. \u201cIranian forces have assessed striking US assets in south-eastern European countries such as Bulgaria, which last month approved the use of its Bezmer air base for US refuelling aircraft,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/9ea0cde8-129e-4d88-976f-e367b7dd4d2c?syn-25a6b1a6=1\">wrote<\/a> Najmeh Bozorgmehr and Andrew England of the <em>Financial Times<\/em> in August. A British air base in Cyprus, they added, also had made the list of prepared targets.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The more recent warnings from Iran envisage strikes on Europe beyond its southeastern region. Mottaki, the ex-foreign minister, singled out Germany, Italy, Portugal, and the UK\u2014all of which, to varying degrees, have allowed U.S. bases hosted on their soil to be used for operations against Iran. Tehran\u2019s missiles would suffer from poor accuracy at such ranges, but the Islamic Republic, one <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/gop-was-investigating-secret-service-before-trump-shooting\/\" title=\"GOP Was Investigating Secret Service Before ... Shooting\">military expert told<\/a> the <em>FT<\/em>, could \u201cwork through proxies\u201d like Iraqi militias and Lebanese Hezbollah. Indeed, the latter group has already fired Iranian-made drones at targets in Cyprus as part of the current conflict, hitting a hangar at the British airbase there.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tehran, by escalating its threats of an even wider war, aims to deter a U.S. attack, but on that score, the strategy could fail if not backfire. Iranian strikes on Europe would increase the likelihood of an outcome for which Trump has repeatedly called\u2014the direct entry of America\u2019s Western allies in the war\u2014mitigating the deterrence value and compromising the credibility of Tehran\u2019s threats.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Iran is also trying to discourage Europe from letting its territory be used as a launching pad for U.S. attacks, and here its threats could prove more successful. \u201cWhile some European countries may allow the U.S. to use bases in their territory to facilitate future strikes, many are likely to be even more hesitant than earlier this year,\u201d said Geranmayeh. \u201cThey do not want to be embroiled in an American war in the Middle East that lacks an exit strategy.\u201d<\/p>\n<section class=\"c-subscribe-email\" >\n<div class=\"l-container\">\n<div class=\"c-subscribe-email__wrap\">\n<div class=\"c-subscribe-email__head\">\n<h4 class=\"c-subscribe-email__heading\">Subscribe Today<\/h4>\n<h5 class=\"c-subscribe-email__subheading\">Get daily emails in your inbox<\/h5>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"c-subscribe-email__form-wrap\">      <!-- Begin Mailchimp Signup Form -->      <\/p>\n<div id=\"mc_embed_signup\">\n<form id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" class=\"validate\" action=\"https:\/\/theamericanconservative.us4.list-manage.com\/subscribe\/post?u=442e644c01f8e54e26e4ff3f8&#038;id=f7b67cac40\" method=\"post\" name=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" novalidate target=\"_blank\">\n<div id=\"mc_embed_signup_scroll\">\n<div class=\"c-subscribe-email__fields\">              <label for=\"mce-EMAIL\" class=\"u-screenreader-text\">Email Address:<\/label>              <input id=\"mce-EMAIL\" class=\"c-subscribe-email__field\" name=\"EMAIL\" type=\"email\" value=\"\" placeholder=\"Your Email\" \/>              <input id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe\" class=\"c-subscribe-email__submit o-button o-button--red-500 o-button--solid\" name=\"subscribe\" type=\"submit\" value=\"Subscribe\" \/>            <\/div>\n<div id=\"mce-responses\" class=\"clear\">\n<div id=\"mce-error-response\" class=\"response\" style=\"display: none;\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"mce-success-response\" class=\"response\" style=\"display: none;\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>              <!-- real people should not fill this in and expect good things - do not remove this or risk form bot signups-->            <\/p>\n<div class=\"u-screenreader-text\" aria-hidden=\"true\">              <input tabindex=\"-1\" name=\"b_442e644c01f8e54e26e4ff3f8_f7b67cac40\" type=\"text\" value=\"\" \/>            <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>      <!--End mc_embed_signup-->          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Early in the war, Tehran hit U.S. bases in the Persian Gulf region to push back American forces. If conflict resumes, Iran could follow through on its threats against Europe, expanding its military reach to try further repelling America. \u201cWhether it would actually go that far is uncertain, but the threat itself is meant to raise the perceived costs of another war for Washington and its allies,\u201d Toossi said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The conflict has already brought significant harm to Europe, sparking an acute energy crisis that continues to strain government budgets and exacerbate civil strife. Nevertheless, most European leaders, wary of incurring Trump\u2019s wrath, have stopped short of refusing basing access for the American campaign. The hawkish NATO secretary general\u2014a former prime minister of the Netherlands\u2014has even boasted that \u201c5,000 sorties\u201d of U.S. aircraft were launched from Europe.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yesterday, American voters soundly rejected a war of aggression that has harmed their financial interests without advancing their security. One wonders when European leaders\u2014whose own citizens have suffered greater financial hardships and face far graver risks from that war\u2014will do the same.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here\u2019s a concise paraphrase of the excerpt you provided:<\/p>\n<p>After the midterms gave Democrats control of Congress and rebuked Trump, the big question is whether the president will restart his costly, unpopular war against Iran, which had been pushed aside during the campaign. Analysts warn Iran would retaliate strongly and could widen targets to energy sites, military assets, and even digital infrastructure. Although I\u2019ve doubted Trump would authorize major strikes urged by Netanyahu, the Pentagon is moving forces to the region and he still hints at a heavy response. If conflict resumes and escalates, Iran could extend the fighting beyond the Middle East to Europe, warning that European bases and countries such as Germany, Italy, Portugal, and the UK could be targeted. Proxies like Iraqi militias and Hezbollah might be used to reach distant targets. European leaders are cautious about hosting bases for U.S. operations and fear getting dragged into a broader war, even as the current conflict has strained European energy supplies and budgets. In short, the risk of a wider war-including Europe-remains real, even as U.S. voters rejected the aggression. <\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019d like, I can paraphrase the rest of the text in chunks or tailor the tone (more neutral or more critical). Also, tell me the desired length if you want a longer version<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4462,"featured_media":2697487,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/tac.imgix.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2286809317-scaled.jpg?auto=compress&#038;crop=faces%2Centropy&#038;fit=crop&#038;fm=jpg&#038;h=630&#038;ixlib=php-3.3.1&#038;q=80&#038;w=1200","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[548],"tags":[8447,3823,3634],"class_list":["post-2697486","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-conservative-news-daily","tag-europe","tag-iran","tag-trump"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/tac.imgix.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/GettyImages-2286809317-scaled.jpg?auto=compress&#038;crop=faces%2Centropy&#038;fit=crop&#038;fm=jpg&#038;h=630&#038;ixlib=php-3.3.1&#038;q=80&#038;w=1200","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2697486","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4462"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2697486"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2697486\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2697494,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2697486\/revisions\/2697494"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2697487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2697486"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2697486"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2697486"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}