United States President, Donald Trump, on Tuesday warned that “a whole civilization will die” in Iran if Tehran fails to comply with Washington’s demands.
“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
Although he did not provide specific details, Trump has previously threatened that the US military could target Iran’s bridges, power plants and other civilian infrastructure, pushing the country back into the “stone age.”
Trump has set a midnight GMT deadline on Tuesday for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the key shipping route used for transporting oil and other commodities.
On Monday, he dismissed a temporary cease-fire proposal currently under discussion, saying it was not enough.
Iran, however, has resisted the pressure from Washington. State media reported that Tehran is demanding a complete end to the conflict rather than a temporary cease-fire.
In the same Truth Social post, Trump suggested there was still a possibility of a breakthrough agreement.
“Now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight,” he wrote.
Trump also said on Monday that beginning late Tuesday evening in Washington, DC, US forces would destroy “every bridge in Iran” and shut down “every power plant” across the country, an action many experts say would amount to a war crime.
US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran have continued since February 28. Earlier on Tuesday, before Trump’s latest warning about the destruction of “civilization,” Tehran reported that its major oil export facility on Kharg Island was under attack.
