India, Aug. 19 -- US President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to bomb Oman if the Gulf state obstructs his administration's push to end the West Asia war, dragging a player into the conflict that has otherwise spent decades keeping close ties with both Washington and Tehran.

It was the second time in the five-month war that Trump had threatened Oman this way. The US President made a near-identical threat in May.

Speaking to Fox News by phone, Trump said, "If Oman gets in the way, we'll bomb the s*** out of them."

He also claimed his administration had opened a direct backchannel with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and said Tehran should surrender.

An IRGC spokesperson denied any such contact, telling Iran's Tasnim ...