Trump threatens to hit Iran’s power plants unless Tehran returns to talks

US President Donald Trump has warned that American military strikes on Iran would continue and intensify in the coming days, saying the United States would begin targeting Iran’s power plants and bridges next week unless Tehran returns to negotiations. Speaking in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday night, Trump said US forces were striking Iranian targets “very, very hard” and vowed to maintain the campaign until he deemed it sufficient. “We’re hitting every single thing that they have along the shore, along the waterfront. .. They’ll continue until I say it’s enough, ” he said. Trump indicated that energy infrastructure would become the next phase of the military campaign, saying power plants and bridges would be targeted if Iran failed to resume talks. “We’re going to hit them very hard tonight, tomorrow night and the night after. Then next week it gets really bad for them because next week comes the power plants and the bridges. We’ll knock them out unless they get to the table and negotiate, ” he said. The US president said he believed Iran had “no choice” but to reach an agreement, adding that American officials had been in contact with Iranian representatives shortly before the interview. “They want to make a deal. .. You better make a deal. You’re not going to have anybody left, ” Trump said. On the Strait of Hormuz, Trump stressed that Washington wanted the strategic waterway to remain open. He said he had considered imposing a transit fee but abandoned the idea after Gulf states opted to increase spending in the United States instead. “It’s got to remain free because otherwise others will do the same thing, ” he said, adding that military pressure was the only effective way to bring Iran to the negotiating table. Trump also claimed that a potential agreement had been within reach two days earlier but said Tehran backed out at the last moment. His remarks came after the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced another round of strikes against Iran on Tuesday, saying the operation was aimed at further degrading Iranian capabilities used to attack commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. CENTCOM later said the United States had resumed its naval blockade of Iran, with more than 20 US Navy warships and hundreds of military aircraft deployed across the Middle East. The latest escalation comes despite a Pakistani-mediated memorandum of understanding intended to reduce tensions and pave the way for a broader peace agreement between Washington and Tehran. Meanwhile, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed on Tuesday that it had destroyed several US weapons systems and drones during attacks targeting American military assets in Bahrain and Kuwait.

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