US President Donald Trump warned that “a whole civilisation will die” in Iran if the country does not heed his ultimatum to accept US war demands.
In a post on Truth Social, he said, “However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalised minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World.”
Meanwhile, Iran’s IRGC has warned they would retaliate beyond the Middle East and deprive Washington and its allies of oil and gas if the United States crossed “red lines”, a statement carried on state television said, AFP reports.
“The Revolutionary Guards once again declare that if the American terrorist army crosses the red lines, our response will go beyond the region,” the statement said.
It added that the Guards — Iran’s ideological army — would target infrastructure “to deprive the United States and its allies of oil and gas in the region for years”.
“America’s regional partners should also know that until today, we have exercised great restraint for the sake of good neighbourliness and have had some reservations in choosing targets for retaliation, but all these reservations have since been removed,” it said.
Iranian officials today reported damage to at least two bridges, railway infrastructure and a key highway as part of a wave of deadly US-Israeli airstrikes on infrastructure targets, AFP says.
A bridge near the holy city of Qom and another carrying a railway line in the central city of Kashan were struck, according to regional officials quoted by state media.
Two people were killed and three were injured in Kashan, senior regional security official Akbar Salehi said, according to Iran’s IRNA news agency. A key highway in northern Iran connecting Tabriz with Tehran via Zanjan was also closed after a hit, an official told IRNA.
The Mizan news agency also reported a strike on railway tracks in Karaj, outside Tehran, with images showing Red Crescent rescuers carrying an injured man on a stretcher.
All trains were cancelled to and from Iran’s second city of Mashhad today following a warning from Israel against using the railways.
A US-Israeli strike has shut down a key highway in northern Iran connecting the city of Tabriz with Tehran via Zanjan, AFP reports, citing regional authorities.
The highway was hit around 90 kilometres (55 miles) outside of Tabriz, Iran’s main northern city, the official IRNA news agency said, quoting the crisis management office of the northern East Azerbaijan province.
A Telegram channel of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said the strike hit an overpass bridge.
Qatar warns region ‘close’ to point where war escalation cannot be controlled
Qatar has warned that the war in the Middle East was close to a threshold where it cannot be controlled after US President Donald Trump set a deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, AFP reports.
“We have been warning since 2023 that escalation left unchecked will get us into a situation where it cannot be controlled and we are very close to that point and this is why we have been urging all parties to find a resolution to find a way of ending this war before it’s too late,” Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said.
'Only the president knows' what he'll do on Iran: White House
Donald Trump is the only person who knows his plans for Iran, the White House said, after the US president warned that a "whole civilization will die' if Tehran fails to reach a deal Tuesday.
"The Iranian regime has until 8PM Eastern Time to meet the moment and make a deal with the United States," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement to AFP, when asked if Trump was prepared to use a nuclear weapon, and about a report that Iran had cut off negotiations.
"Only the President knows where things stand and what he will do."