MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Trump threatens to destroy Iran's power plants and bridges over Hormuz Strait closure

“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell,” Trump said

US President Donald Trump threatened Sunday to bomb Iran's power plants and bridges if Tehran fails to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping by Tuesday at 8:00 PM Eastern Time.

In an expletive-laden post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote that Tuesday would be “Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran,” warning that Iranian leaders would be “living in Hell” if they failed to comply. The message concluded with the phrase “Praise be to Allah.”

In subsequent interviews with several US media outlets, Trump said there was a “good chance” of reaching a deal but warned he was considering “blowing everything up and taking over the oil” if negotiations failed.

He said: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP”

The ultimatum is the latest in a series of deadlines Trump has set and postponed since March 21, when he first threatened to “obliterate” Iran's energy infrastructure if the strait was not reopened within 48 hours. Since then, deadlines have been extended at least three times while indirect negotiations through Pakistan, Egypt, Turkey and Oman have continued without significant progress.

Iran dismissed the threat. Presidential office spokesman Seyyed Mehdi Tabatabaei said the strait “will be reopened” only when “a portion of transit tolls is used to compensate for all the damage caused” by the war. Gen. Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi of Iran's central military command called Trump's words a “helpless, nervous, unbalanced and stupid action” and warned that “the gates of hell will open” for the US president.

The threat came hours after Trump confirmed the rescue of the second crew member of an F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet shot down over Iranian territory on Friday. The pilot had been recovered shortly after the aircraft went down, but the second airman was located in a mountainous region of southwestern Iran and rescued with serious injuries in an operation deep behind enemy lines.

Meanwhile, cross-border attacks continued to escalate across the region. Israel struck an Iranian petrochemical facility on Saturday and attacked the Qasem Soleimani international airport in southwestern Iran on Sunday. Israeli defense officials said Tel Aviv was awaiting US approval to strike additional energy facilities next week.

Iran responded with missiles and drones against Israel and Gulf allies. A ballistic missile scored a direct hit on a residential building in the Israeli city of Haifa, injuring four people. In the United Arab Emirates, authorities battled fires at the Borouge petrochemical plant in Abu Dhabi caused by intercepted missile debris. Kuwait reported severe damage to oil facilities, petrochemical plants and a water desalination station from Iranian drone strikes. Bahrain reported similar attacks on crude oil storage facilities and a state-run petrochemical plant.

An advisor close to Iran's new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, raised the stakes by threatening to also close the Bab al-Mandab Strait connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, BBC reported.

The Strait of Hormuz has been effectively closed to commercial traffic since February 28, when the US and Israel launched the attack that killed then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. The blockade has sent Brent crude prices soaring, with spot prices running more than $32 above futures contracts, which closed above $109 per barrel on Thursday.