President Donald Trump of the United States has given Iran 48 hours ultimatum to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping or face the destruction of its energy infrastructure.
This is as Tehran, Iran’s capital city, launched its most destructive attack yet on Israel.
Trump gave the ultimatum barely 24 hours after he said he was considering “winding down” military operations following three weeks of war.
The ultimatum also came as the key oil passage remained effectively closed and thousands more American Marines headed to the Middle East.
Writing on his Truth Social, Trump stated that the US would hit and obliterate Iranian power plants — starting with the biggest one first — if Tehran did not fully reopen the strait within 48 hours, or 23:44 GMT on Monday
Meanwhile, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi said Tehran had imposed restrictions only on vessels from countries involved in attacks against Iran, and would assist others that stayed out of the conflict.
According to the Fars news agency, in response to Trump’s threat, Iran’s army said it will target energy and other infrastructure belonging to the US and the regime in the region.
