President Donald Trump has threatened Iran with a wave of new attacks if it does not open the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, in an expletive-laden social media rant that critics have seized on as evidence of his crude and unchecked use of power.
Hours after his victorious announcement that the US military had saved the second stranded US airmen, who had ejected into Iran after his plane was damaged by enemy fire, Trump said further strikes would come on Tuesday if Tehran did not comply.
“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran,” he wrote in a post on Truth Social, the online platform he owns, on Sunday (Monday AEST). “There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.”
Trump said he would hold a news conference at 1pm local time on Monday (3am AEST on Tuesday) and also posted about a deadline set for 8pm on Tuesday (10am AEST on Wednesday), without offering any details about what he meant.
On March 26, Trump gave Iran a 10-day deadline to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which would expire on Monday evening, US time. His threat to bomb civilian power plants, however, could constitute a war crime under international law.
Late on Saturday, US forces rescued an airman from Iran after his fighter jet was shot down on April 2 during a combat mission. Trump hailed the dramatic rescue operation.
The US deployed dozens of aircraft to retrieve the injured crew member from a mountainous area a day after the pilot from the same F-15E jet was rescued.
The mission spanned two days and involved hundreds of special operations troops. US aircraft dropped bombs and fired on Iranian convoys to keep them away from the aviator’s hiding area, The New York Times reported.
Source: AFR
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