Trump threatens Iran with 'massive Armada' and presses three demands
President Trump sharply intensified his threats against Iran on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026, suggesting that if Tehran did not agree to a set of demands the administration had made, the United States could soon mount an attack “with speed and violence.” The aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, along with other naval ships, bombers and fighter jets, has taken up positions in the region in striking distance of Iran.
Mr. Trump gave no specifics about the deal he was demanding, saying only that a “massive Armada” was heading toward Iran. U.S. and European officials say they have put three demands to Tehran: a permanent end to all enrichment of uranium; limits on the range and number of its ballistic missiles; and an end to all support for proxy groups in the Middle East, including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis in Yemen.
Notably absent from Mr. Trump’s public comments, and from the list of demands, was any reference to protecting the protesters who took to the streets in Iran in December. Iran says the death toll was 3,117, but human rights groups say that figure vastly underestimates the actual number killed, offering ranges from 3,400 to 6,200; internet blackouts and government efforts to bury bodies complicate any determination of the true toll.
Mr. Trump compared the current military buildup to the forces he amassed near Venezuela late last year, ahead of what the report describes as the operation that seized Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
donald trump threats, uss abraham lincoln, massive armada, three demands to iran, end uranium enrichment, ballistic missile limits, end support for proxies, support for hamas, support for hezbollah, support for houthis, iran protesters december, iran death toll, internet blackouts iran, islamic revolutionary guard corps, ayatollah ali khamenei, abbas araghchi, steve witkoff, masoud pezeshkian, iran nuclear sites, natanz fordo isfahan, venezuela operation maduro, truth social post, u.s. troops in region, iran one-way drones, u.s. and european officials