ANKARA, March 16. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump may send US Navy ships to the Persian Gulf "if he dares," General Ali Mohammad Naini, the spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC, the elite Iranian army) has said.

"The Strait of Hormuz is controlled by the IRGC, and Iran has full sovereignty over it. Hasn't Trump said he destroyed the Iranian Navy? Well, if he dares, may he send his ships to the Persian Gulf region," the Turkish news agency Anadolu quoted the military spokesman as saying.

Naini also emphasized that Tehran seeks to "punish the aggressor" and will continue "destructive attacks against the enemy."

On February 28, the US and Israel launched a military operation against Iran. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were hit. The White House justified the attack by citing missile and nuclear threats allegedly emanating from Tehran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a large-scale retaliatory operation, attacking targets in Israel. US targets in Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia were also hit. The strikes on Iran killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several other key figures in the leadership.