(Image source from: New York Post)

The United States President Donald Trump warned his Iranian counterpart in a late Sunday evening Twitter post over consequences "the likes of which few throughout history have ever suffered," if it threatens the United States."

"NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE," he said on Twitter in a direct message to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

"WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!" Trump said, writing the entire message in capital letters.

To Iranian President Rouhani: NEVER, EVER THREATEN THE UNITED STATES AGAIN OR YOU WILL SUFFER CONSEQUENCES THE LIKES OF WHICH FEW THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE EVER SUFFERED BEFORE. WE ARE NO LONGER A COUNTRY THAT WILL STAND FOR YOUR DEMENTED WORDS OF VIOLENCE & DEATH. BE CAUTIOUS!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 23, 2018

Trump's tweet on Sunday came after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani cautioning the American leader on Sunday over pursuing aggressive policies against Tehran, saying: "War with Iran is the mother of all wars."

Still, he did not rule out peace between the two countries.

"You are not in a position to incite the Iranian nation against Iran's security and interests," Rouhani said, in an apparent reference to reports of efforts by Washington to destabilize Iran's Islamic government.

Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of State, in a California speech ahead of Trump's Twitter-posted threat, on Sunday, launched a rhetorical conflict on Iran's leaders, by comparing them to a "mafia" and promising unspecified backing for Iranians unhappy with their authorities.

To the most part Iranian-American audience, Pompeo dismissed Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif an Iranian Rouhani who negotiated a nuclear trade with the United States and five else countries, as "merely polished front men for the ayatollahs' international con artistry."

The high-stakes verbal sparring is reminiscent of the exchanges Trump had last year with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before tensions eased and the two leaders met this year in a historic summit.

Iran has been a favorite target for Trump since his unforeseen reconciliation with nuclear-armed North Korea.

By Sowmya Sangam