Iranian MPs called for capturing US soldiers and launching ground attacks on Kuwait and Bahrain, as discussions grew over a possible ground operation by either side and US strikes entered their 10th consecutive day.

An Iranian army spokesperson warned on Tuesday that Iran would bomb its own territory rather than allow US forces to occupy it, as threats of a potential ground operation by either side raised fears of a broader war across the Persian Gulf.

“If America occupies our territory, we will even bomb our own territory,” Brigadier General Mohammad Akrami-Nia said on Iranian state television. “This is the logic of war.”

The remarks came as US Central Command marked the 10th consecutive day of strikes against Iranian targets. US President Donald Trump is expected to decide in the coming days how to proceed, with the prospect of a US ground operation or seizure of Iranian territory now openly discussed.

The Pentagon is preparing options for ground operations in Iran that would fall short of a full invasion but could involve thousands of troops and take weeks or months, the Washington Post reported, citing unnamed US officials. The White House said the Pentagon was working to give the president “maximum optionality” but that “this does not mean the president has made a decision.”

Former Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, now a member of parliament, said Iran should go further than striking US bases in the region and consider capturing American soldiers.

“The US threats have intensified, and it has said that it will seize Kharg Island and take control of Iran’s oil facilities,” Mottaki said.

“I have been advocating for a ground war for a long time. We should seize one of the US bases in the region, capture its forces, and bring them back to our country,” he added.

Iranian MP Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani, a former member of the parliamentary National Security Commission, said Tehran could launch ground attacks on Kuwait and Bahrain if the US invaded Iranian territory.

On the prospect of a US assault on Kharg Island, he said Washington might take it for a day but could not hold it.

“Iranian missiles from Semnan, Zahedan, Isfahan and elsewhere can reach it. Occupying Kharg Island would turn it into a target for Iran,” Ardestani said.

Kuwait’s Bubiyan Island in the crosshair?

Speculation has also grown around a possible Iranian move against Kuwait, including its Bubiyan Island.

The island, with an area of 863 square kilometres, is Kuwait’s largest and sits at the northern end of the Persian Gulf close to Iraq.