President Trump warned Monday he would carry out a “complete demolition” of every bridge and power plant in Iran if a deal was not reached by Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
With that deadline looming, Iranian officials rejected U.S. demands and offered a 10-point proposal of their own. According to the New York Times, the plan included a guarantee that Iran would not be attacked again, an end to Israeli strikes against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon, the removal of sanctions in exchange for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and a $2 million fee imposed by Iran for every ship transiting the waterway.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on social media that “more than 14 million brave Iranians have so far declared their readiness to sacrifice their lives to defend Iran. I too have been, am, and will be sacrificing my life for Iran,” remarks that followed a call from Iran’s deputy minister for youth urging citizens — including young people, cultural figures and athletes — to form human chains next to power plants. “We will stand hand in hand next to power plants across the country, with every belief and taste, to say: attacking public infrastructure is a war crime,” Deputy Minister of Sports and Youth Alireza Rahimi wrote.
Iran’s ambassador in Islamabad, Reza Amiri Mughadam, said Pakistan’s efforts to stop the war were “approaching a critical, sensitive” period but outlined Tehran’s position in state-linked media: “A complete cessation of the war is Tehran’s maximum demand in the process of peace diplomacy,” he said, adding that any settlement must include “a guarantee of non-repetition of aggression.” Mughadam also warned unnamed Gulf countries to consider their relations with Iran, saying, “Know that sooner or later America will leave this region by accepting defeat and you will stay.”
The U.N. Security Council was expected to table a resolution demanding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday at 11 a.m. ET; the resolution is sponsored by Bahrain.
On the military front, Israel said it struck one of the “few remaining” petrochemical facilities producing ballistic missile and explosive materials in Shiraz, along with a ballistic missile site in northwestern Iran and other infrastructure across the country. Israel also warned Iranians via X to avoid traveling by train and to stay away from railway tracks.
Iran retaliated by firing missiles into central Israel, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. The attacks forced the closure of the King Fahd Bridge between Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. Saudi Arabia’s defense ministry said it was assessing damage to an energy facility from falling debris after dozens of ballistic missiles and drones were intercepted. The United Arab Emirates also engaged incoming missiles and drones with its air defenses.
Reporter contributions: Daniel Estrin in Tel Aviv, Diaa Hadid in Mumbai and Tina Kraja in Washington, D.C.