'You will pay the consequence at time, place of our choosing’: Hegseth warns Iran over support to Houthis

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth on Wednesday warned Iran that it will “pay the consequences at the time and place of our choosing” for supporting the Houthis, even as the US has relaunched talks with Iran over its nuclear programme.

Message to IRAN:

We see your LETHAL support to The Houthis. We know exactly what you are doing.

You know very well what the U.S. Military is capable of — and you were warned. You will pay the CONSEQUENCE at the time and place of our choosing.

— Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (@SecWar) May 1, 2025

Taking to X, Hegseth wrote, “Message to IRAN: We see your LETHAL support to The Houthis. We know exactly what you are doing. You know very well what the U.S. Military is capable of — and you were warned. You will pay the CONSEQUENCE at the time and place of our choosing.”

The US and Iran have so far held three rounds of indirect talks, mediated by Gulf state Oman, aimed at sealing a deal that would block Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon but also lift crippling economic sanctions imposed by Washington.

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The US and Iranian delegations are again set to meet in Rome on Saturday.

US President Donald Trump, in a post reshared by Pete Hegseth on X, reiterated a March statement holding Iran responsible for Houthi attacks.

Tehran maintains the Houthis operate independently. The group, which controls northern Yemen, has targeted Red Sea shipping in support of Palestinians.

Since March, the US has launched strikes on over 1,000 Houthi targets. In a show of force, the Pentagon has deployed six B-2 bombers to Diego Garcia and stationed two aircraft carriers in West Asia, along with repositioned air defence systems from Asia.

While both sides claim to favour diplomacy, the core dispute — now spanning over two decades — remains unresolved.

Trump, speaking to Time Magazine earlier this month, said a deal with Iran is possible but warned that military action remains on the table if talks fail.

With inputs from agencies