Washington says two members of Tehrans UN delegation defied an order to leave the country

The US has expelled two more members of the Iranian delegation that attended the UN General Assembly in New York after they allegedly ignored an order to leave the country, AFP and Axios reported on Saturday, citing a State Department official.

US and Iranian negotiators separately met with mediators last month without reaching a breakthrough, leaving the Middle East bracing for a potential resumption of hostilities. American media reported that after the sides failed to reach an agreement on Monday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ordered Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and other diplomats to leave the country earlier than planned.

"Two more members of the Iranian delegation were found still in [New York] long after the United Nations General Assembly had passed. They have now been kicked out of the US," a US official told AFP, adding that Rubio "means business."

According to Axios, one diplomat left on Friday night and the other on Saturday morning.

The Iranian mission to the UN had previously disputed Washington's account of the delegation's departure, saying its members had left in accordance with a schedule communicated to the US before the General Assembly session.

"Having achieved nothing, the State Department has resorted to propagating baseless and worthless news," the mission wrote on X on Thursday.

US President Donald Trump has resumed threats to "annihilate" Iran's leadership in recent weeks, hinting that he could order new strikes unless Tehran accepts his peace terms.

Iranian officials and the military have said they are prepared for further escalation.

"After one failure after another, the worst president in American history just keeps talking - and talking - and now his words have even outrun his own fantasies. You can win every day in your own imagination. But reality is shaped by Iran - by its people, its soldiers, and its missiles," Mohsen Rezaei, head of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, wrote on X on Friday.

The standoff comes as Washington reinforces its military presence in the Middle East. The USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group and USS Makin Island amphibious ready group are heading to the region, adding roughly 9,000 to 10,000 sailors and Marines.

The USS George Washington and USS George H.W. Bush are already operating there. If both remain when the Theodore Roosevelt arrives, the US could have three aircraft carriers in the Middle East by late October.

Some US officials reportedly believe Trump could resume major combat operations after the midterm elections in early November. The war remains unpopular among Americans, with 71% of registered voters saying the Trump administration lacks a clear strategy for ending the conflict, according to a recent Fox News poll.

(RT.com)