According to Reuters, there are no signs that Iran agrees to the demands made by President Trump—to open the Strait of Hormuz before the end of Tuesday, or else face a large-scale attack on its civilian infrastructure, which would be the largest escalation in this war so far.
Faced with Iran's tough stance, Trump is also unwilling to back down. He warned that the United States will adhere to the deadline set for Tuesday to eliminate Iran.
When discussing the Iran issue, Trump said that entire civilizations will perish tonight and will never recover. 'I don't want that to happen, but it very well might. However, now that we have achieved a complete and thorough regime change, with a more sensible and mature new regime in a dominant position, perhaps some truly transformative events might occur, who knows? Tonight we will know everything; this is an extremely important moment in the long and complex history of the world.'
An Iranian senior official told Reuters that Tehran rejected a temporary ceasefire proposal relayed by mediators. Negotiations on lasting peace can begin only after the United States and Israel stop their strikes, ensure that no further attacks will be carried out, and compensate for losses.
Anonymous sources said any future solution must ensure Iran controls the strait and charges for past shipments.
As Trump’s deadline nears, global markets have largely frozen, with investors hesitant and unable to judge whether Trump will carry out his threats—or cancel actions as he has done in the past.
Trump’s deadline for Iran is 8:00 p.m. Washington time on Tuesday (8:00 a.m. Beijing time on Wednesday), demanding that it end its blockade of Gulf oil shipments or else all of Iran’s bridges and power plants will be destroyed within four hours.
However, Iran still refused his request and threatened retaliation against infrastructure of the U.S. Gulf allies—these desert cities would be uninhabitable once the power and water are cut off.
In the latest nighttime attack, a synagogue in Tehran was destroyed, which Iran said was caused by Israeli airstrikes. Footage broadcast by Iranian media shows Hebrew texts scattered among the ruins of the Rafian synagogue.
“During Jewish holidays, the Zionist regime didn’t leave us alone either. It attacked an old and sacred Jewish synagogue of ours.” Homayoun Sameh, a representative of Iran’s Jewish community in parliament, told national media, “The synagogue building was completely destroyed, (the Torah) scrolls buried under rubble.”
The Israeli military did not immediately comment. Iran’s Jewish community of ancient lineage numbers in the thousands and is one of the largest Jewish communities in the Middle East outside Israel.
Israel did not wait for Trump’s deadline to expire. On Tuesday it threatened Iran’s civilian infrastructure and warned Iranians on Persian-language social media to stay away from railways: “You will endanger your lives on the train and near the tracks.”
“I hope this is another bluff.”
People in Iran still hope to avoid an escalation of the threats.
“I hope this is another Trump bluff.” Shima, 37, told Reuters by phone from the central city of Isfahan. “It’s one thing to destroy infrastructure, and another for people to be unable to build the country’s future,” she said.
In the past few weeks, Trump has abruptly canceled similar threats, saying talks with unnamed individuals in Iran were “productive,” but Tehran has denied any substantive negotiations took place.
So far, the two countries have exchanged proposals. Pakistan is the main mediator, but there are currently no signs of any compromise—both sides claim they have won the war and demand concessions from the other.
Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan said on Tuesday that Islamabad’s “positive and constructive efforts” to broker an end to the war have entered a “critical and sensitive phase,” but he did not provide more details.
According to a source familiar with the matter, a proposal brokered by Pakistan calls for a temporary ceasefire and lifting Iran’s de facto blockade of the strait, while postponing broader peace talks to subsequent negotiations.
But according to a report by Iran’s state news agency on Monday, Iran’s 10-point response calls for permanently ending the war, lifting sanctions, and promising to rebuild the U.S.-Israeli strike-damaged Iranian facilities.
The plan also includes a new mechanism to manage passage through the Strait of Hormuz—previously an open international waterway through which about 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas are typically shipped. Since February 28, when the United States and its ally attacked Iran, Iran has effectively closed the strait to almost all vessels, allowing only Iranian-flagged ships to pass.
On Sunday, Trump posted a new ultimatum on social media: “Open that damn strait, you bunch of lunatics—otherwise you will be living in hell. Just wait and see!” Iranian officials said such language was born of desperation, even madness.
The countdown set by Trump
At a Monday news conference, Trump escalated further: “A whole nation can be destroyed in one night—and that night could be tomorrow night.” He said, “Every bridge in Iran will be destroyed… every power plant will be knocked out, burning, exploding, and never usable again.”
That leaves investors wavering between two bets: either a quick resolution or an escalation of the conflict—which could lead to an unprecedentedly longer disruption of energy supplies and deal a severe blow to the global economy.
“We’re back to the countdown Trump set, and we can’t be sure what will happen,” said Kyle Rodda, a senior markets analyst at Capital.com. “More aggressive traders might take a one-way position. Others seek to hedge the risk or exit entirely. But for market participants, there’s almost nothing they can do besides watch.”
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations said Trump’s threat was “directly inciting terrorism” and provided “clear evidence” of intent to commit war crimes under international law. Iran’s top military command said Trump is “delusional.”