President Donald Trump issued a new warning to Iran on Wednesday, declaring that the United States is prepared to strike the regime “with great force” if attacks by its proxy groups continue.

Speaking to reporters after U.S. and Saudi forces carried out coordinated strikes against Iran-backed militias in Iraq, Trump described the Iranian proxy network as “a cancer on the world” and said ongoing talks with Tehran would not prevent military action.

“I’ll let them keep talking,” Trump said, while stressing that the United States would respond forcefully to attacks targeting American forces in Jordan and other U.S. interests in the region.

Trump also praised the joint U.S.-Saudi operation, saying it was coordinated with the Iraqi government. “We’re going to teach Iran a very hard lesson,” he said. “They’ll suffer a crushing defeat. We’ll hit Iran with great force.”

Earlier Wednesday, U.S. Central Command announced that American and Saudi forces carried out precision strikes against Iran-backed militias in Iraq linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. According to CENTCOM, the targeted sites were involved in planning attacks against U.S. forces and Saudi energy infrastructure.

Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry said the strikes were coordinated with CENTCOM and targeted militia positions connected to recent drone attacks on the kingdom’s oil facilities.

The Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), an umbrella organization of Iraqi militias, claimed several of its headquarters were struck and condemned the operation as “a very dangerous escalation” and a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty.

Iraqi media reported that 12 people were killed and four others were wounded in the strikes, though those casualty figures have not been independently confirmed.

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