Donald Trump has warned Iran that it has 48 hours to either strike a deal with Washington or reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump reminded Iran of the 10-day deadline he issued on March 26. “Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT. Time is running out. 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them,” Trump wrote.
Trump said he had extended the original deadline after Iranian officials asked for more time. Speaking to Fox News on March 26, he said Tehran requested a seven-day pause on US strikes targeting its energy infrastructure, but he instead gave Iran 10 days, setting a deadline of April 6.
“They said to me very nicely, through my people, ‘Could we have more time?’” Trump said. He added that if Iran failed to comply, he would target the country’s power plants.
Iran has rejected the US proposal to end the conflict, calling it “one-sided and unfair”.
Experts have said that attacks on civilian energy infrastructure could constitute a war crime.
Tensions rose further after Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, appeared to threaten the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a key waterway linking the Suez Canal to global shipping lanes.
Ghalibaf questioned how much of the world’s oil, gas, wheat, rice, and fertiliser passes through the strait, raising concerns over global supply chains.