Iran issues chilling threat of ‘devastation’ as Trump sparks WW3 fears | World | News

Iran has warned of “much more devastating” retaliation just hours after President Donald Trump issued an expletive-laden post on Truth Social. Once again reigniting fears surrounding WW3, the 79-year-old leader appeared to set “Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time”, 1am Wednesday morning in the UK, as a new deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

He threatened to destroy Iran’s power plants and bridges if this deadline failed to be met and repeated an earlier threat to unleash “hell” but contradictorily told US media there was a “good chance” of a deal being reached with Tehran. He wrote on Truth Social: “Open the F***in’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell.” Ending his explosive post with “Praise be to Allah”.

Trump posted the extraordinary threat on Easter Sunday, less than 12 hours after he announced the successful rescue mission of the missing US fighter pilot.

Iran remained defiant, showing no willingness to back down, it carried out strikes on economic and infrastructure targets in neighbouring Gulf Arab states.

Meanwhile, Iran’s joint military command warned it would intensify attacks on regional oil and civilian infrastructure if the US and Israel target such sites, according to state television.

“If attacks on civilian targets are repeated, the next stages of our offensive and retaliatory operations will be much more devastating and widespread,” reads a statement from a spokesman for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters – Iran’s highest operational military command unit. The statement was published by the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).

Meanwhile, Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, accused Trump of threatening to “commit war crimes”.

In a long post on X this morning he said: “The President of the United States, in his capacity as the highest-ranking official of his country, has openly threatened to commit war crimes.”

Gharibabadi added that it is recommended that Trump is “recorded in history as a super war criminal, he desist from continuing these threats—whose consequences will not be limited to Iran alone”.

Gharibabadi also warned that Iran would “deliver a decisive, immediate and regret-inducing response to any aggression or imminent threat”.