Smoke and flames rise at the site of airstrikes on Iran -Credit:Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images
(Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
President Donald Trump may be willing to delay the deadline again, insiders have suggested, as Iran shows no sign of backing down.
The US president escalated his threats against Iran and its power plants and bridges on Monday, as his ultimatum for a negotiated deal drew ever closer. Tehran has rejected a 45-day ceasefire proposal and insisted on a permanent resolution to the conflict.
“The entire country can be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night,” Trump warned, suggesting his Tuesday 8 pm EDT deadline was non-negotiable. As the toll on US troops increases, Trump added that Iran had already been granted sufficient extensions.
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Despite this, there appears to be a bit of wiggle room on the deadline. “If the president sees a deal is coming together, he’ll probably hold off. But only he and he alone makes that decision,” a senior administration official told Axios.
Washington has demanded that Iran open the Strait of Hormuz to all shipping traffic, threatening to destroy power plants and bridges if it refuses.
Trump’s first deadline was on March 23, but that changed several times over the ensuing weeks.
Significant sections of the B1 Bridge are seen destroyed after an airstrike attributed to the United States and Israel targeted the site near Tehran, in Karaj, Iran -Credit:Anadolu, Anadolu via Getty Images
On March 21, Trump posted on Truth Social that if Iran doesn’t “FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS.”
But just 12 hours before the March 23 deadline, he took to Truth Social to claim that both countries had productive conversations toward ending the conflict as he pushed the deadline to the end of that week.
Israel further piled on the pressure by striking a major petrochemical facility and eliminating the intelligence chief of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.
Trump said the US ‘might’ take out the entirety of Iran on Tuesday night -Credit:Anadolu via Getty Images
In response, Tehran conveyed its own 10-point proposal to halt the fighting through Pakistan, a key intermediary, according to Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency.
“We only accept an end of the war with guarantees that we won’t be attacked again,” said Mojtaba Ferdousi Pour, head of Iran’s diplomatic mission in Cairo. He noted that Iran no longer has confidence in the Trump administration following two U.S. bombing campaigns against the Islamic Republic during previous negotiation rounds.
Trump has previously issued ultimatums to Iran, only to subsequently delay or retreat. But this round of threats appears stronger than ever.
Smoke and flames rise from an Israeli airstrike that hit the Qasmiyeh Bridge near the coastal city of Tyre, Lebanon -Credit:AP Photo/Mohammad Zaatari
“Every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night,” he said, and all power plants will be “burning, exploding and never to be used again.”
When questioned over concerns regarding war crimes allegations, Trump responded, “No, not at all.” He implied that Iranian citizens want the US to follow through on its threats, suggesting it could ultimately bring an end to their current leadership.
Iranian citizens are “willing to suffer,” he said, “in order to have freedom.” Yet there has been no indication of any uprising within Iran as residents seek shelter from the ongoing bombardment.
International condemnation continued to mount against further strikes. “Any attack on civilian infrastructure is a violation of international law and a very clear one,” United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric subsequently told reporters.