U.S. President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order aimed at requiring hospitals to be more transparent about prices before charging patients for healthcare services, at the White House in Washington, U.S. June 24, 2019.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump slammed Iran on Tuesday, saying any Iranian attack on Americans would be met with "great and overwhelming force" and "obliteration."

Trump's comments on Twitter came a day after he announced fresh sanctions on the Islamic Republic in the wake of its downing of an unmanned U.S. drone last week.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani responded to the new sanctions by calling them "outrageous and idiotic" and saying the White House was suffering from a "mental illness."

Trump called that response a "very ignorant and insulting statement."

TRUMP TWEETS

"Iran leadership doesn't understand the words "nice" or "compassion," they never have," Trump wrote. "Sadly, the thing they do understand is Strength and Power, and the USA is by far the most powerful Military Force in the world, with 1.5 Trillion Dollars invested over the last two years alone."

In another tweet, Trump said that any Iranian attack on Americans would be met with "great and overwhelming force" and "obliteration."

TRUMP TWEET

The latest confrontation comes amid rising tensions between Washington and Tehran since the Trump administration's decision to withdraw from the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement in May 2018.

Last week, U.S. officials said an Iranian surface-to-air missile shot down an American military surveillance drone over the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said the aircraft was over its territory. Hours later, Trump said Iran made a "very big mistake" by shooting down the spy drone.