The US president has threatened to strike Iran’s power plants unless the crucial waterway is reopened to navigation
US President Donald Trump threatened on Saturday evening to strike power plants in Iran unless the Strait of Hormuz is reopened within 48 hours. Iran has kept the crucial waterway closed to most shipping since the outbreak of the war on February 28.
Trump issued his ultimatum after failing to convince other NATO members to help the US police Hormuz, while strikes on Iran’s naval bases and ships did not restore navigation.
Earlier on Saturday, Iran struck the southern Israeli city of Dimona, home to a large nuclear city, which is believed to be a part of Israel’s long-rumored nuclear weapons program. Iranian state TV said the missile barrage was a response to the strike on one of Iran’s key nuclear sites in Natanz.
Iranian strikes on Dimona and the city of Arad prompted the Israeli army to launch a probe into the failure of air defenses to intercept the missiles.
Here are the latest developments:
US President Donald Trump has ruled out pausing the conflict, saying American forces “knocked out everything” and insisting “you don’t do a ceasefire when you’re literally obliterating the other side.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has described Tehran as “a loyal and reliable partner” in a Nowruz message released by the Kremlin.
Iraq has declared force majeure on foreign-operated oilfields after disruptions to tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz cut southern crude output from about 3.3 million barrels per day to roughly 900,000 bpd, Reuters reported, citing oil ministry officials.
Drone strikes sparked a major fire near a US-linked military complex in Baghdad, while Iran said its drones also targeted military infrastructure at Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion Airport, including fuel depots and aircraft refueling sites.
Follow our live coverage below for continuous updates. You can also read our previous updates here.
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