US President Donald Trump has warned that “a whole civilisation will die tonight” unless Iran reaches a deal on reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
The threat comes as the US is carrying out new strikes on military targets on Kharg Island, Iran’s key oil export terminal.
According to Trump, “something revolutionarily wonderful can happen” before his deadline of 20:00 EDT on Tuesday for Iran to reopen the key shipping channel.
His Vice, JD Vance, speaking in Budapest, says the US has “tools in our toolkit that we so far haven’t decided to use” against Iran but adds the US has “fundamentally” completed its military objectives in the country.
“Trump may hope this puts pressure on Tehran to reach a deal. But the risk of further US escalation against Iran is very real,” Brian Finucane, a former legal adviser at the State Department, says of Trump’s threat.
According to Finucane, “this threat against a ‘whole civilization’ could plausibly be interpreted as a threat of genocide.”
