US president Donald Trump, in a message on Truth Social on Sunday, threatened to escalate strikes on Iran unless it opens 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—–’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”
The vulgar message, remarkable even by Trump’s standards, came ahead of the expiration on Monday of a 10-day ultimatum he had set for Iran, threatening to attack the country’s energy infrastructure if they failed to open the strategic waterway to international shipping.
Trump told Fox News there was a good chance he could strike a deal with the Iranians before Monday’s deadline. He told the Wall Street Journal that Iran would lose “every power plant” if they didn’t strike a deal by Tuesday.
Mahdi Tabatabaei, an aide at the Iranian president’s office, said Mr Trump’s “insults and nonsense” are born of “sheer desperation and anger” saying he “has instigated a full-scale war in the region and is still issuing threats”.
He clarified that the Strait of Hormuz “will be reopened” when “a portion of transit tolls is used to compensate for all the damage caused” by the war.
[ US rescues second crew member from downed fighter jet in IranOpens in new window ]
Iran’s closure of the strait is having a crippling effect on the global economy and has sent the price of energy soaring, including in the US.
It remains unclear if ground troops will be used if Washington decides on an escalation and whether a stepped-up bombing campaign would be all out and immediate, or gradual, attacking one energy target at a time, in an effort to force Iran to the negotiating table.
Trump decided to step up the ante after the successful rescue mission of the second US airman from the F-15E fighter jet that was shot down over southwest Iran on Friday. Confirming the rescue of the injured colonel on Sunday morning, Mr Trump described the mission as “one of the most daring search-and-rescue operations in US history”. He said dozens of aircraft took part in the mission and confirmed there were no American fatalities.
The US military knew the location of the missing airman at an early stage and US aircraft reportedly fired at Iranian forces trying to reach the area.
Iranian media reported that five people were killed in strikes during the rescue mission and several American aircraft were destroyed.
Israel reportedly assisted the rescue mission by providing intelligence and logistical support to the US forces, but no Israeli combat troops participated.
On Sunday, day 37 of the war, US and Israeli jets continued pounding sites across Iran. Kuwaiti oil facilities were targeted by Iranian drone attacks, resulting in fires and significant material losses, along with energy facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. Iran fired salvos of missiles at Israel on Sunday, with one projectile hitting an industrial zone.
Fighting also continued in Lebanon. An Israeli air strike on Kfarhata, a village in south Lebanon, killed seven people, including a four-year-old child, Lebanon’s health ministry reported. Another Israeli attack on the Jnah neighbourhood in Beirut killed four people.
The Israel Defense Forces further expanded its ground offensive against Hizbullah in south Lebanon, deploying a reserve brigade to carry out what were termed “targeted operations.”
Eighteen right-wing legislators urged Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu to order the full occupation of south Lebanon up to the Litani river and to expel all the Lebanese residents, and not to suffice with a limited buffer zone.