“Iran is ready for a more intense war and will escalate its counterstrikes if the U.S. continues attacking its territory and infrastructure, according to a senior official from the Islamic Republic,” Bloomberg reports.“Tehran has no intention of backing down in the face of an American naval blockade and attacks on its oil tankers, said the official, who asked not to be identified discussing sensitive matters. Economic pain may be increasing, they said, but the country’s leaders see the war with the U.S. as posing an existential threat that leaves them little choice but to keep fighting.”