Donald Trump’s new threat could be the endgame for Iran?

US President Donald Trump’s final deadline for Iran could be his last one, an American defence official told Axios on Tuesday. The official said they were "sceptical" there would be any extension this time around.

Another senior administration official told the US-based news agency that if Trump sees a deal coming together, he'll probably hold off the strikes. “But only he and he alone makes that decision.”

Trump faces a key decision on a tight timeline: follow through on his threat to strike Iran’s infrastructure from 8 pm ET, or extend his deadline to allow more time for negotiations.


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In his latest warning, the US president expanded potential targets to include power plants and bridges, as his ultimatum nears. The move comes after Tehran rejected a 45-day ceasefire proposal, insisting instead on a permanent end to the war.

“The entire country can be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night,” Trump said. He suggested that his Tuesday 8 p.m. EDT deadline was final, saying he'd already given Iran enough extensions.

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Trump might be the most hawkish person in the top echelons of his administration on Iran, according to the Axios report that quoted a US source.

Hormuz Hiccup & mounting pressure

The US told Iran to open the crucial Strait of Hormuz to all shipping traffic or see power plants and bridges wiped out, sparking warnings about possible war crimes. Israel piled on pressure by attacking a major petrochemical plant and killing the intelligence chief for the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.

Tehran with its rejection conveyed its own, 10-point plant to end the fighting through Pakistan, a key mediator, Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency said.

“We only accept an end of the war with guarantees that we won’t be attacked again,” Mojtaba Ferdousi Pour, head of Iran’s diplomatic mission in Cairo, told The Associated Press. He said Iran no longer trusts the Trump administration after the US bombed the Islamic Republic twice during previous rounds of talks.

A regional official involved in talks said efforts had not collapsed. “We are still talking to both sides,” he told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss closed-door diplomacy.

And even Trump said negotiations with Iran continued.

Iranians ‘willing to suffer’ for freedom: Trump

Trump has issued ultimatums to Iran before, only to find ways to back off. But he was more explicit this time on plans to follow through.

“Every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night,” he said, and all power plants will be “burning, exploding and never to be used again.”

Asked if he was concerned about accusations of war crimes, Trump responded, “No, not at all." He suggested that Iranians want the U.S. to carry out its threats because it could lead to the end of their current leadership.

Iranian citizens are “willing to suffer," he said, "in order to have freedom.” But there has been no sign of an uprising in Iran as residents shelter from bombardment.

International warnings piled up against expanded strikes. “Any attack on civilian infrastructure is a violation of international law and a very clear one,” United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric later told journalists.

A rare statement by Iran

Israel struck a key petrochemical plant in the South Pars natural gas field, saying it was aimed at eliminating a major source of revenue for Iran. The field, the world’s largest, is shared with Qatar and is Iran’s biggest source of domestic energy for its 93 million people.

The strike appeared to be separate from Trump’s threats. An earlier Israeli attack there in March prompted Iran to target energy infrastructure in other Middle East countries, a major escalation.

Israel also killed the head of intelligence for Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, Maj. Gen. Majid Khademi, according to Iranian state media. And Israel said it killed the leader of the Revolutionary Guard’s undercover unit in its expeditionary Quds Force, Asghar Bakeri.

“We will continue to hunt them down one by one,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said of top Iranian officials.

New Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who still has not been seen or heard in public, issued a rare statement expressing condolences over Khademi. Israeli strikes have killed dozens of top Iranian leaders, including Khamenei’s father.

Israel’s military also said it struck three Tehran airports overnight — Bahram, Mehrabad and Azmayesh — hitting dozens of helicopters and aircraft it said belonged to the Iranian Air Force.

A Tehran resident said “constantly there is the sound of bombs, air defenses, drones,” speaking on condition of anonymity for her safety. Another detailed taking sleeping pills to get through nightly bombardments, and said people worry about power, gas and water cuts.