President Donald Trump on Sunday suggested the United States would unleash “hell” on Iran’s energy infrastructure on Tuesday if the country does not open the Strait of Hormuz.
“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***in’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah,” the president said in a Truth Social post.
The Strait of Hormuz is considered essential for energy security. But the waterway, under Iranian control and connected to the Persian Gulf, has become backed up amid the Iran war as oil tankers and other energy-transporting vessels fear making their way through the passage. The development has sent shock waves through the global energy industry, leading countries, particularly in Asia, to grapple with oil and gas shortages and spiking energy costs.
Before his Sunday ultimatum on opening the strait, Trump issued many such warnings to Iran in recent days, as the war approaches the six-week mark by which the White House had initially hoped the conflict would be resolved. The current deadline for opening the waterway appeared to be running on a 10-day ultimatum ending on Monday at 8 p.m., but the president indicated Sunday that attacks would begin Tuesday at 8 p.m. in a one-day extension of the deadline.
U.S. strikes on Iran have severely degraded the country’s air force and navy and eliminated top tiers of Tehran’s leadership, including the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s former supreme leader.
The president said Saturday that many more Iranian military leaders were killed in a strike. But despite the blows dealt to the country’s system, it continues to fight back, including with attacks successfully downing two U.S. military aircraft over Iran earlier in the week. The planes crashed, but all three crew members have been safely recovered. One of them, in an A-10 Thunderbolt attack plane, managed to eject safely over Kuwaiti airspace after it was struck while searching for the F-15’s crew members.
One of two crew members from the fighter jet was rescued on Friday. The second one, Trump revealed Sunday, was also rescued in what he described as an “Easter miracle.” He said Iran was closing in on capturing the downed airman but was thwarted by U.S. forces.
WORLD LEADERS DISCUSS STRAIT OF HORMUZ AFTER TRUMP DEMANDS THEY ‘TAKE CARE OF IT’
“The enemy was large and violent. The rescuers were brilliant, strong, decisive, and as cool as anyone can be. The Iranians thought they had him, but it wasn’t even close, and remember, we got two, but couldn’t talk about the first in that it would have highlighted that there was a second,” Trump said.
The president gave a rare prime-time address to the nation on Wednesday when he provided an update on the Iran war. During the speech, Trump said the war would continue for another three weeks.“Our armed forces have been extraordinary. There’s never been anything like it,” he declared. “We are going to finish the job. And we’re going to finish it very fast. We’re getting very close.”
