Trump ramps up ultimatum to Iran: ‘A whole civilization will die tonight’

President Trump on Tuesday intensified his threats against the Islamic regime in Iran as his evening deadline approached for it to either cooperate with U.S. demands or have the airstrikes rain down hellfire on the country’s infrastructure.

“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” he said on Truth Social.

Over the weekend, the president said “all Hell will reign down” if Iran does not open the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil shipping passage closed amid the war, or make a ceasefire deal within 48 hours, which would have been Monday. But on Tuesday, he also acknowledged a scenario in which the country would be spared.

“However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized 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. 47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end. God Bless the Great People of Iran!” Mr. Trump said.

His weekend warning reiterated his March 26 threat, in which he said he would delay attacks on Iran’s energy infrastructure by 10 more days in hopes of making a deal. His original deadline was March 23.

“They’ll have no bridges. They’ll have no power plants. They’ll have no anything,” he told reporters Monday.

SEE ALSO: U.S. conducts strikes on Kharg Island as Trump’s deadline looms

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cautioned against attacks on civilian infrastructure, warning that doing so is barred under international law.

“Even if specific civilian infrastructure were to qualify as a military objective,” an attack would still be forbidden if it risks “excessive incidental civilian harm,” his spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, told The Associated Press Monday.

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But Mr. Trump said that he is “not at all” concerned about the possibility of committing war crimes, adding that he hopes “I don’t have to do it.”

Iran rejected the latest ceasefire proposal on Monday.

• Mary McCue Bell can be reached at mbell@washingtontimes.com.