US weighs ‘mother of all bombs’ in potential Iran strikes, CNN reports, as Ghalibaf vows to force concessions

LONDON/WASHINGTON/ISLAMABAD: The United States military has drawn up plans that could involve using its largest non-nuclear air-delivered bomb against Iranian energy infrastructure and nuclear sites if President Donald Trump orders renewed combat operations, CNN reported on Thursday, as Tehran vowed to combine military preparedness with negotiations to force Washington to accept its demands.

The report, citing US officials familiar with military planning, said the options included the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB), widely known as the “mother of all bombs”. Reuters said it could not immediately verify the report.

The potential use of the weapon would mark a significant escalation, although officials familiar with the discussions questioned whether it would achieve Washington’s strategic objectives. No decision to deploy the bomb was reported.

The developments came as Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the United States must face consequences and make concessions, while two commercial vessels sank near the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz following separate projectile strikes, according to maritime officials.

Ghalibaf says US must be made to pay

In a televised interview on Wednesday evening, Ghalibaf said military action and negotiations were both instruments of deterrence, arguing that Iran needed sufficient military strength to prevent further attacks.

As reported by Mehr News, he accused Washington of violating the Islamabad Agreement and said even a signed commitment would not, by itself, guarantee that the United States would not attack Iran again.

Ghalibaf said Tehran’s objective was neither an endless war nor permanent negotiations, but to compel the other side to accept Iran’s demands or acknowledge defeat and make concessions.

Referring to Iran’s eight-year war with Iraq, he argued that the country’s experience had demonstrated the importance of building capabilities that could deter future attacks.

He cited Iran’s firepower, offensive capabilities and air defences, as well as regional allies, its strategic position overlooking the Strait of Hormuz, national unity and economic resilience, as elements of a broader deterrence strategy.

Ghalibaf also said military gains should be translated into political and legal gains through diplomacy, while negotiations should give Iran the opportunity to strengthen its capabilities and protect its national interests.

His remarks, reported by Iranian media, underscored Tehran’s stated position that diplomatic engagement alone would not provide adequate security without military and economic leverage.

Two ships sink near Hormuz

The diplomatic confrontation has coincided with mounting risks to commercial shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz.

A Singapore-flagged container ship, the GFS Pride, sank after sustaining damage and catching fire while transiting the strait, Singapore’s Maritime and Port Authority said on Wednesday. All 21 crew members were safely evacuated, and no injuries were reported.

In a separate incident, the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged dry bulk carrier Cape Dao also sank near the strait, weeks after being struck by a projectile on September 23, according to data from the International Maritime Organization and maritime sources cited by Reuters. One crew member was killed, while the remaining crew were evacuated after the strike.

The incidents were the second and third vessel losses since the US-Iran war began on February 28, according to Reuters’ analysis of IMO casualty data.

Singapore’s maritime authority condemned the attacks on commercial shipping as unjustifiable and a breach of international law.

Maritime risk management company MARISKS warned that the threat was no longer confined to oil tankers, with container ships and bulk carriers also suffering serious damage.

The recent surge in attacks has heightened concern over a waterway through which about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas trade passed before the war.

Iran seeks leverage as US tightens pressure

Iran has sought to tighten its grip on the Strait of Hormuz since US and Israeli strikes began on February 28, restricting maritime traffic in an effort to gain leverage over Washington.

Two senior Iranian officials told Reuters that Tehran was adopting new tactics against vessels transiting the waterway as it sought to maintain pressure on the United States, including by keeping oil prices elevated and influencing US midterm elections.

The United States, meanwhile, has maintained a naval blockade of Iranian ports and tightened sanctions, steps that Tehran says have contributed to the escalation.

The confrontation has extended beyond the strait itself. The US military said on Wednesday that it had destroyed an Iranian-affiliated dhow on October 6 in the Gulf of Oman, alleging that the vessel had been conducting surveillance and targeting US Navy ships.

US Central Command said the dhow’s crew had been safely removed before the vessel was destroyed and that repatriation efforts were ongoing. The military did not provide further details in the statement.

The announcement followed a separate incident reported by Reuters on October 11, when the US military said it had disabled a commercial cargo vessel attempting to breach its blockade of Iran.

Escalation clouds prospects for diplomacy

The reported MOAB planning, Ghalibaf’s insistence that Washington must make concessions, and the latest shipping losses point to a widening confrontation in which military pressure and negotiations remain closely intertwined.

For Tehran, Ghalibaf’s stated strategy is to use military readiness and its regional position to strengthen its hand at the negotiating table. Washington’s reported planning, meanwhile, suggests that additional strike options remain under consideration should Trump decide to resume combat operations.

The immediate question is whether the competing strategies will create leverage for a diplomatic settlement or push the conflict into another phase of escalation, with the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for global energy supplies, remaining one of its most vulnerable flashpoints.