The Times of Israel reports: “Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a force which was key in putting down recent nationwide protests in a crackdown that left thousands dead, is ‘more ready than ever, finger on the trigger,’ its commander said Saturday, as US warships headed toward the Middle East.

Nournews, a news outlet close to Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, reported on its Telegram channel that the commander, Gen. Mohammad Pakpour, warned the United States and Israel ‘to avoid any miscalculation.’

‘The Islamic Revolutionary Guards and dear Iran stand more ready than ever, finger on the trigger, to execute the orders and directives of the Commander-in-Chief,’ Nournews quoted Pakpour as saying.

Tension remains high between Iran and the US in the wake of a bloody crackdown on protests that began on December 28, triggered by the collapse of Iran’s currency, the rial, and swept the country for about two weeks…”