Trump reiterates threat to destroy Iran as deadline nears

U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated his ultimatum for Iran to agree to a ceasefire deal or face a major military escalation, as both sides kept up attacks in the sixth week of the war.

“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Trump said in a social-media post on Tuesday. “Maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight.”

His comments came as the U.S. and Israel maintained their bombardment of Iran — including strikes on the oil-export hub of Kharg Island — while the Islamic Republic fired missiles across the Persian Gulf. Trump has threatened to destroy Iranian power plants, bridges and other infrastructure if there’s no deal by 8 p.m. Eastern Time.

Speaking in Budapest, Vice President JD Vance said he’s confident Iran will issue a response by then.

The United Nations has warned that indiscriminate targeting of civilian infrastructure could constitute a war crime. Trump said he’s “not at all” concerned about that potential outcome.

The U.S. leader’s latest ultimatum marks a critical juncture in the war that has killed more than 5,200 people, most of them in Iran and Lebanon, and seen energy facilities struck across the region. The president began issuing deadlines on March 21 to force Iran to reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz and has repeatedly extended the timeline, but said Monday it’s “highly unlikely” he’ll do so again.

Freedom of navigation through Hormuz must be part of any deal, Trump said.

Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency said explosions were heard on Kharg Island, the country’s main oil-export hub. Fox News said the U.S. targeted bunkers, a radar station and ammunition storage there, alongside an unintentional hit on the island’s landing docks. Two people were killed in a U.S.-Israel attack on a railway bridge near the Iranian city of Kashan on Tuesday, state-run Nour News reported.

Israel is preparing for the possibility that fighting could continue for several more weeks, and on Tuesday told Iranians not to use their country’s railway network until 9 p.m. local time — the type of warning it sometimes issues before attacks on civilian areas.

Oil pared gains as investors wavered ahead of the Trump deadline, with the risk of further escalation offsetting tentative ceasefire signals. Brent was slightly higher at $110 a barrel in London.

Trump said on Monday talks with Iran are “going well” and that reopening the strait is “a very big priority.”

“We have to have a deal that’s acceptable to me, and part of that deal is going to be we want free traffic of oil and everything,” he said.

The U.S. military could destroy “every bridge in Iran,” he added. Power plants would be rendered “burning, exploding and never to be used again,” he said.

Iran has warned it would respond to that type of escalation by ramping up its own attacks on energy infrastructure in the Gulf — a move that could heighten the global fuel squeeze and amplify damage to the world economy.

The Islamic Republic launched seven ballistic missiles and several more drones at Saudi Arabia overnight into Tuesday, and debris from interceptions fell in the vicinity of some energy sites, the kingdom said. A key bridge connecting Bahrain and Saudi Arabia was briefly closed as precaution.

The Israel Defense Forces reported three missile volleys from Iran since midnight, targeting multiple sites in Tel Aviv and nearby towns.

Israel approved further Iran missions for the coming three weeks if necessary, an IDF spokesperson said. The country is also fighting a parallel war in Lebanon against Tehran-backed Hezbollah, and struck targets in Beirut on Monday.

Singapore’s top diplomat warned the economic fallout from the conflict could worsen and investors have yet to adjust. “I’m quite sure the markets are not fully pricing the worst-case scenario,” Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan told Bloomberg Television at an Investment Management Association of Singapore conference.

Trump has struggled to find an off-ramp to a conflict that’s become increasingly unpopular with Americans, with average gasoline prices above $4 a gallon. He said Vice President JD Vance is involved in ceasefire negotiations along with special envoy Steve Witkoff, though Tehran on Monday rejected a ceasefire proposal.

“I can tell you that we have a active, willing participant on the other side,” Trump said. “They’re negotiating, we think in good faith — we’re going to find out.”

Iran has called for a permanent end to the war, reconstruction efforts and the lifting of sanctions, in addition to protocols for ensuring safe passage through Hormuz, according to Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.

Iran’s offensive against the U.S. and Israel wouldn’t be affected by Trump’s threats, the agency reported, citing a spokesman for the nation’s joint military command.

Iran has said it would only allow strait operations to resume when it is compensated for damage from the war.

The Islamic Republic has brought traffic via Hormuz — through which a fifth of global oil and liquified natural gas exports typically flows — to a near standstill.

Two tankers loaded with Qatari LNG appeared to be making an exit from the Persian Gulf on Monday, only to U-turn within hours. They were denied clearance by Iranian officials, according to traders involved in the transit, who requested anonymity as they aren’t authorized to speak with media.

Tehran is allowing a trickle of vessels to sail through the waterway, which it also uses for its own oil exports.

Trump lamented that he would like to take Iran’s oil for the U.S. but that the American public wants to wind down the conflict.

“I’m a businessman first,” Trump said when asked about the trade-off between seizing the oil supplies and public opinion. “And I’ve said, why don’t we use it — to the victor go the spoils? And we don’t have that.”

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—With assistance from Dana Khraiche and Patrick Sykes.