Peloni: Iran’s deputy Foreign Minister, Ismail Saghaei Esfahani, responds to Trump’s 48-hour ultimatum:
“The next card in the game, namely, the destruction of the most important parts of Israel’s and America’s electricity and water infrastructure in the region….will exert even more pressure on him.”
Tuesday morning should prove to hold some important developments.
Mark Tanos | Contributor | Daily Caller |
Screengrab via TS
President Trump gave Iran 48 hours to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday or face American strikes on the country’s power infrastructure.
“If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The facility most likely at the top of that list is the Damavand Combined Cycle Power Plant just outside Tehran, which holds the title of Iran’s largest by generating capacity, the Washington Examiner reported. Other notable installations include the Shahid Salimi plant along the Caspian Sea and the Shahid Rajaee facility near Qazvin.
Saturday’s ultimatum followed a week of stalled diplomatic efforts. Trump had previously pushed allied nations to form a maritime coalition to protect commercial shipping through the waterway, but the response was lukewarm, the Examiner noted. By Friday, the president appeared to abandon that approach entirely, saying other countries that rely on the passage should secure it themselves and that Washington would only assist “if asked.”
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has already been working to erode Iran’s grip on the strait. CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said American forces dropped multiple 5,000-pound bombs on a hardened underground coastal facility Iran used to store anti-ship cruise missiles and mobile launchers, Fox News reported. “Iran’s ability to threaten freedom of navigation in and around the Strait of Hormuz is degraded as a result and we will not stop pursuing these targets,” Cooper said.
Twenty-two nations have since signed a joint statement expressing willingness to help ensure safe transit through the waterway, according to Fox News.
The economic toll of the strait’s effective closure continues to mount. Oil prices have surged as the conflict enters its fourth week, and the administration moved Friday to temporarily waive sanctions on Iranian crude already loaded onto ships, the Associated Press reported. Iran’s oil ministry fired back that the country has “essentially no crude oil left in floating storage.”
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