AGENCIES

US President Donald Trump yesterday warned that “a whole civilisation will die” in Iran if the country does not heed his midnight deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz, as Tehran showed no sign of budging and reported that US-Israeli attacks on its infrastructure were already underway.

Speaking in Budapest, Vice President JD Vance said the United States has “tools in our toolkit that we so far haven’t decided to use” against Iran, without explaining further.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned they would deprive the US and its allies of oil and gas if Washington crossed Tehran’s “red lines”.

As the clock ticked down on Trump’s deadline, strikes on Iran intensified throughout the day, hitting railway and road bridges, an airport and a petrochemical plant. US forces also attacked targets on Kharg Island, home to Iran’s main oil export terminal, which Trump has openly mused about seizing.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed attacks on railways and bridges, saying they were “used by the Revolutionary Guards”. The Israeli military said it had already completed a broad wave of strikes targeting “infrastructure sites” across Iran.

Trump had initially vowed to carry out the “complete demolition” of Iran’s critical infrastructure, particularly bridges and power plants, only if a deal was not reached by 8:00pm in Washington.

Writing on Truth Social, Trump elevated his ultimatum for Iran.

“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,”

TRUMP BRANDED ‘CRAZY’ OVER IRAN THREATS - PAGE 5

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