US President Donald Trump said his deadline for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz or face attacks on critical infrastructure is Tuesday evening, according to an interview he gave to the Wall Street Journal published on Sunday.
US President Donald Trump on Sunday said that a deal with Iran is possible by Monday, and that Tehran was negotiating, Fox News reported.
"If they don’t do something by Tuesday evening, they won’t have any power plants, and they won’t have any bridges standing,” Trump told the Journal. In a social media post earlier on Sunday, Trump had said Iran would face infrastructure attacks if it did not open the strait by Tuesday.
The president has previously postponed his deadline to attack twice, while Oman's Foreign Ministry said officials had discussed how to reopen the Strait of Hormuz with Iranian counterparts without reaching a definitive agreement.
Iran has threatened to retaliate by intensifying its attacks on critical infrastructure in Israel and other states that are allied with the United States.
An escalation could further derail the lives of civilians throughout the region and add to worries about the global economy, which has been rattled by soaring energy prices since the start of the war.
Over the past two days, the U.S. military has been in a race with Iranian armed forces to find the missing airman after an F-15E jet was shot down over Iran on Friday. It was the first known instance of a U.S. combat aircraft being downed since the start of the war.
The plane’s pilot was quickly rescued. But a second officer was stranded in Iran and injured in the incident. U.S. commandos found the airman deep inside Iranian territory under the cover of darkness.
There were no U.S. casualties among the rescue team, Trump said Sunday. The rescued officer had “sustained injuries, but he will be just fine,” Trump added.
The incident underscored Iran’s ability to fight back despite weeks of attacks on its military arsenal. Another U.S. aircraft, an A-10 Warthog attack plane, crashed near the Strait of Hormuz at about the same time, and the lone pilot was rescued, two U.S. officials said.
U.S. officials had sought an off-ramp to the war with Iran by passing messages through Pakistani mediators. But Iranian officials have publicly dismissed the U.S. demands, which would have restrained Iran’s missile and nuclear programs.
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