Trump Threatens Iran Over Hormuz Strait

President Donald Trump has issued an ultimatum demanding that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday or face severe consequences, including attacks on Iranian power plants and bridges. According to multiple reports, Trump threatened to attack these infrastructure targets if his deadline is not met.

The latest threat comes amidst escalating tensions in a five-week war between the U.S., Israel, and Iran. The ultimatum follows the rescue of two U.S. aviators whose F-15E fighter jet was shot down over Iran on Friday. An audacious operation deep inside Iran rescued an American officer after an intense search operation.

The Strait of Hormuz is a critical shipping route for global energy markets, and its closure has driven up oil prices. The strait is 21 miles wide at its narrowest point and carries roughly 20 million barrels of oil a day, along with about one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas.

Iranian officials have responded defiantly to Trump's threats. Iran mocked the ultimatum as 'helpless, nervous, and stupid,' according to the BBC. The country has effectively shut off the Strait of Hormuz since war broke out in late February, sending oil and gas prices soaring. Legal experts have raised concerns about potential war crimes, as both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure.

Diplomatic efforts continue amid the escalating tensions. Oman's Foreign Ministry reported meetings between Iranian and Omani officials to discuss ensuring smooth transit through the strait. Egypt has also been involved in mediation efforts, with its foreign minister speaking to U.S. and Iranian counterparts. Trump announced he will hold a press conference at the White House on Monday alongside military officials.

Al Jazeera reports that mediators, including Pakistan, Egypt, and Turkiye, are attempting to secure at least a partial breakthrough to postpone or end the risks of further military escalation by Trump. A source close to mediators confirmed to Al Jazeera that a proposal for a 45-day ceasefire is on the table. The idea is to create a longer window within which Iran and the U.S. can negotiate broader differences in a bid to arrive at a longer-term agreement to end the war.

The BBC has managed to talk to several Iranians, all opposed to the current establishment, about their reactions to Trump's threats. Ordinary Iranians expressed fears of infrastructure strikes and the economic impact of the war. Many are worried about disruptions in water supply and electricity, with some stockpiling essentials. The economic strain is evident, with businesses struggling and layoffs beginning.

Several Democrats have condemned Donald Trump after the United States president renewed his threat to destroy Iran’s civilian infrastructure in a profanity-laden message. Democratic legislators questioned the Republican’s mental stability after an Easter Sunday message in which he threatened to bomb Iran’s power plants and bridges, which legal experts said would amount to war crimes.

Congresswoman Yassamin Ansari, who is of Iranian descent, called for invoking the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from the presidency, suggesting he is unfit to serve. 'The President of the United States is a deranged lunatic, and a national security threat to our country and the rest of the world,' Ansari wrote in a social media post.

In the war’s opening US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, an attack on a girls school in the south of the country killed more than 170 people, mostly children. Multiple visual investigations have shown that the strike was likely carried out by a U.S. Tomahawk missile.

Senator Elissa Slotkin, a centrist Democrat and former CIA operative, said attacks against Iran’s civilian infrastructure would violate the Geneva Conventions and the Pentagon’s own Law of War Manual. 'It is both irresponsible and wrong to indiscriminately kill civilians in Iran and destroy civilian infrastructure like bridges and power plants – particularly when the President said this war was to aid the Iranian people,' Slotkin said.

Progressive Senator Bernie Sanders called on his fellow lawmakers to stop the war after Trump’s threat. 'These are the ravings of a dangerous and mentally unbalanced individual. Congress has got to act NOW. End this war,' he wrote in a social media post.

For his part, Senator Jeff Merkley stressed that the US military is legally required to refuse orders to commit war crimes. 'President Trump’s profanity-laden Easter threat to attack Iran’s civilian infrastructure – power plants and bridges – are the words of a frustrated and immoral madman,' the Democrat said.

Despite the mounting criticism of the war, the US president’s Republican allies have largely stood behind him. 'President Trump is right to insist that any negotiated deal meets our military and strategic objectives. If Iran baulks, he’s right to blow up their crucial infrastructure so they can’t go back to their old ways,' Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said on Monday.

Congressman Don Bacon accused the war’s critics of living in a 'bubble', saying the Iranian government has killed about 1,000 Americans since 1979. The number likely refers to US casualties in the Middle East resulting from attacks carried out by groups allied with Iran during US military interventions in the region.

Later in the day, Trump rejected accusations that bombing civilian infrastructure would amount to war crimes. 'I hope I don’t have to do it,' he said, claiming that his goal is to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.