US President Donald Trump has warned “a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again" if Tehran fails to agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz before his deadline.
In a stark ultimatum, the president has set a hard Tuesday deadline of 8pm EST on Tuesday (1am BST on Wednesday) for Tehran to strike a deal or face devastating military action.
"The entire country can be taken out in one night" Trump had earlier told a White House press conference.
And he doubled down on his threat on Truth Social on Tuesday as he posted with less than 12 hours to go until his deadline.
He wrote: “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will.
“However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?
“We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World. 47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end. God Bless the Great People of Iran!”
It came as the US reportedly carried out several strikes on Kharg Island, the terminal for much of Iran's oil exports in the Gulf, on Tuesday.
Trump earlier said he is “not at all” concerned about committing possible war crimes as he again threatened to destroy Iranian infrastructure with attacks on bridges and power plants in his blitz.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned the US that attacking civilian infrastructure is banned under international law.
It comes as Trump described the rescue of a missing US airman from a downed fighter jet in Iran as “like finding a needle in a haystack”.
Trump, joined by senior national security advisers, said the unidentified airman was hiding in mountains and kept climbing in order to improve the chances for recovery.
Hundreds of American forces were involved in the search and recovery mission and to prevent the Iranians from finding him first, he said.
Meanwhile, a senior official earlier confirmed that Iran has ruled out accepting a temporary ceasefire in exchange for opening the Strait of Hormuz.
Despite efforts by negotiators to agree on an end to the conflict, Iranian officials rejected a temporary ceasefire plan, arguing it would allow adversaries to regroup before continuing their war.
“We are calling for an end to the war and for preventing its recurrence,” Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei was quoted as saying.
It has been reported that the US and Iran received ceasefire proposals from negotiators amid discussions of a 45-day ceasefire as part of a two-phase deal aimed at permanently ending the war.
It’s understood that Donald Trump has also not signed off on the 45-day ceasefire plan.
It comes following days of threats from the US President about blowing “everything up”, amid expletive threats about targeting civilian infrastructure that could constitute war crimes.
America’s closest ally, Israel, has also shown little respect for previous ceasefire deals in the region, breaching ceasefire agreements in both Lebanon and Gaza in the past few years.
Baghaei said that Iran had crafted a response to the ceasefire proposals, which it would reveal “when necessary,” but said US proposals were “extremely excessive and unusual and illogical.”
He added that diplomatic talks are “absolutely incompatible with ultimatums, crimes, and threats to commit war crimes.”
Last week, more than 100 international law experts said that the US strikes on Iran could violate the UN Charter and could be considered war crimes.
Despite this, Trump shows little sign of toning down his rhetoric. Earlier this year, he told reporters, “I don't need international law,” seemingly disregarding the norms and customs designed to maintain peace between nations.
Trump has given Iran the deadline of Tuesday evening to open the Strait of Hormuz, or else: "Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F*****' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
His threats have been widely condemned by both Democrats and even some Republicans.
Iranian officials also dismissed his remarks as "helpless, nervous, unbalanced and stupid.”
On Monday, Iran claimed that Israel and the US killed at least 25 people across Iran, which resulted in Iran firing missiles back at Israel and the Gulf countries.
Israel also claimed it had struck a petrochemical plant and killed the head of intelligence at Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, Maj. Gen. Majid Khademi.
