Trump Posts Profane Ultimatum on Truth Social Threatening Iranian Power Plants and Bridges Over Strait of Hormuz Closure

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump issued a profanity-laced ultimatum on his Truth Social platform on Easter Sunday, April 5, 2026, threatening to target Iran's power plants and bridges unless the country reopens the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday evening. 'Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell — JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP,' Trump wrote in the post, which appeared hours after Pope Leo XIV's Urbi et Orbi Easter message calling for peace through dialogue, according to Vatican records.

The post reaffirmed a series of deadlines Trump has set for Iran to reopen the strait, a chokepoint for about 20% of global oil supplies, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Trump first threatened on March 21, 2026, to 'obliterate' Iran's power plants within 48 hours if the strait was not 'FULLY OPEN,' per his archived Truth Social posts. He extended that deadline on March 23 to March 28 amid reports of 'good' and 'productive' talks, though Iran's Foreign Ministry denied any direct contact with U.S. officials on March 24, Reuters reported. As March 28 approached, Trump pushed it back another 10 days to April 6, citing mediator progress, according to White House transcripts.

On Saturday, April 4, Trump issued a 48-hour warning, posting 'Time is running out - 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them,' per Truth Social. In a Sunday interview with the Wall Street Journal, Trump specified that failure to comply by Tuesday evening would mean Iran would 'lose every power plant and every other plant they have in the whole country,' according to the Journal's published excerpts. Speaking to ABC News' Rachel Scott on April 5, he added, 'If it happens, it happens. And if it doesn’t, we’re blowing up the whole country,' ABC reported. To Fox News' Trey Yingst on the same day, Trump expressed optimism: 'I think there is a good chance tomorrow, they are negotiating now,' while warning of strikes on bridges and power plants if no deal materialized.

The conflict traces to February 28, 2026, when U.S. and Israeli airstrikes targeted Iranian nuclear facilities and military sites, including those linked to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's assassination, according to Pentagon briefings and Israeli Defense Forces statements cited in New York Times reporting. Iran responded the same day by announcing the Strait of Hormuz closure through Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) threats, mine deployments, and attacks on at least 24 merchant vessels by April 2, per U.S. Naval Institute (USNI) logs and Wikipedia-compiled incident reports cross-verified with Al Jazeera. Iranian state media confirmed the blockade on February 28, framing it as retaliation.

Iranian vessel attacks included missiles, drones, mines, and small boats, causing fatalities, oil spills, and a 95% drop in strait traffic, according to International Energy Agency (IEA) data released April 4. The IEA described it as 'the largest energy shock in history.' U.S. gas prices surpassed $4 per gallon nationwide for the first time since 2022, up 25% from a month prior, per AAA data. Brent crude reached $111 per barrel, with shipping insurance rates rising 4-6 times, Reuters reported on April 5.

Recent escalations included a U.S. F-15 fighter jet shot down over southern Iran on Friday, April 3, 2026, the first such loss since the war began, per U.S. Central Command. Both crew members were rescued: the pilot hours after the crash and the second in a deep-penetration operation announced by Trump just after midnight on April 5, who credited 'overwhelming Air Dominance,' according to his Truth Social post. Iran acknowledged the downing via state TV but denied captures.

U.S. strikes have included a bridge near Tehran on April 4, which the Pentagon described as targeting a missile supply route, while human rights groups called it civilian infrastructure, per Axios. Israel struck a petrochemical facility on April 4 and Qasem Soleimani airport on April 5, awaiting U.S. approval for more energy targets, Israeli defense officials told Reuters. Iran fired drones and missiles at Israel, hitting a Haifa residential building on April 5 (four injured), and caused fires at UAE's Borouge facility, Abu Dhabi authorities said. Kuwait and Bahrain reported damage to oil plants from Iranian drones.

Iranian officials rejected Trump's demands. Mahdi Tabatabaei, spokesman for Iran's president's office, said the strait 'will be reopened' once 'a portion of transit tolls is used to compensate for all the damage caused' by the war, per Iranian state media on April 5. Gen. Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi of Iran's central military command called the threat 'helpless, nervous, unbalanced and stupid,' vowing 'the gates of hell will open' for Trump, according to Fars News Agency.

In the U.S., critics raised war crimes concerns. Brian Finucane, former State Department legal adviser now at the International Crisis Group, said a threat to attack 'all bridges or power plants... without distinguishing between lawful and unlawful targets would be a threat to commit war crimes' under international law, in comments to the Washington Post on April 5. Erika Guevara-Rosas of Amnesty International stated attacks on power plants essential for civilians would be 'disproportionate and thus unlawful... even in the limited cases that they qualify as military targets,' per Mother Jones citing her earlier remarks. Brett McGurk, former national security official, told CNN's 'State of the Union' on April 5 that the rhetoric seemed aimed at escalation for a deal but noted shifting objectives.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), House Minority Leader, called it a 'reckless war of choice without any plan' on ABC's 'This Week,' opposing ground troops. Rep. Michael R. Turner (R-Ohio), House Armed Services Committee member, said on the same program that the conflict was 'inevitable' to curb Iran's force projection, deeming ground troops unnecessary. Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) criticized it as 'evil' on X, urging Christian officials to intervene, per HuffPost.

Trump has rejected Iran's ceasefire proposals as insufficient, per White House statements, while urging allies to 'build up some delayed courage' and seize the strait, as he told reporters on March 31. In a April 1 national address, he omitted strait reopening as a core objective, predicting it would occur 'naturally' post-war, transcripts show. Iranian protests predating the war—sparked December 2025, with regime forces killing 3,117 to 7,007 by January 10, 2026, per HRANA and official tallies cited in Al Jazeera—have been cited by U.S. officials as context for intervention, though disputed by Tehran.

Casualties remain disputed: U.S. reports over 2,000 Iranian deaths since February 28; Iran claims higher civilian tolls without specifics. No U.S. ground troops deployed, per Pentagon. Trump scheduled a White House press conference with military leaders for April 6. As of April 6 morning, the strait remained closed, with negotiations unconfirmed by either side.