US President Donald Trump warned Monday that all of Iran could be "taken out" Tuesday at the expiry of a deadline he issued for the Islamic republic to reopen the key Strait of Hormuz waterway.
"The entire country could be taken out in one night and that night might be tomorrow night," Trump told a news conference on Monday, referring to his ultimatum to Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by midnight GMT Wednesday or face strikes on its infrastructure.
In the press conference, Trump said that the US will destroy all of Iran's bridges and power plants in 'four hours' if no deal is reached.
"Every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding and never to be used again," he said, threatening the same for the country's bridges.
"I mean complete demolition by 12 o'clock (0400 GMT Wednesday), and it'll happen over a period of four hours -- if we wanted to."
He further argued that Iranians were willing to suffer for their freedom, saying the United States had intercepted communications urging to "please keep bombing."
"They would be willing to suffer that in order to have freedom," Trump told a press conference.
He further said that more than 170 US military aircraft were used in the rescue of the crew of a fighter plane downed in Iran.
He also threatened an unspecified media outlet with jail time if it does not reveal the person who leaked information about a US military pilot who was missing in Iran.
"We're going to go to the media company that released it, and we're going to say, 'National security. Give it up or go to jail,'" Trump told a news conference.
The presser comes a day before his deadline to destroy Iran's energy infrastructure and bridges if its leaders do not comply with US demands.
Earlier Iran rejected a proposed truce in its war with the United States and Israel, state media reported Monday, despite the stark threat by Trump to destroy its vital infrastructure.
"Iran has conveyed to Pakistan its response to the American proposal to end the war," the news agency IRNA said, without revealing what the offer contained.
"In this response -– set out in ten points –- Iran... has rejected a ceasefire and insists on the need for a definitive end to the conflict."
Earlier, White House said that a proposal for a 45-day ceasefire with Iran is being considered, but Trump has not approved it and military operations are continuing.
According to US media reports, mediators have put forward a plan for a 45-day ceasefire in the Middle East conflict, which has now been received by Washington.
"This is one of many ideas, and POTUS (Trump) has not signed off on it. Operation Epic Fury continues," a White House official said, according to a report by AFP.
The official further said that Trump will speak more on the conflict at a press conference scheduled for 1:00 pm (1700 GMT).
The development comes after Trump on Monday appeared to extend a deadline for the Islamic Republic to release its chokehold on the strategic waterway Strait of Hormuz.
Iran had rejected Trump's threats and warned of "more devastating" retaliation if its civilian infrastructure is targeted.
"If attacks on civilian targets are repeated, the next stages of our offensive and retaliatory operations will be much more devastating and widespread," a spokesman for the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said in a statement posted by state broadcaster IRIB on Telegram.
The warning came after Trump’s social media post on Sunday, threatened to strike Iran if Tehran failed to meet his April 6 deadline to either reach a deal or reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
"Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it... Open the F------ Strait, you crazy b-------, or you’ll be living in HELL – JUST WATCH,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform.
However, in a later post, Trump appeared to extend his deadline by 24 hours. "Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time!" Trump wrote without mentioning Iran or any other details.
Shortly after his Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump gave an interview to Fox News where he said, "If they don’t make a deal, and fast, I’m considering blowing everything up and taking over the oil."
The report comes on a day when US-Israeli attacks on Iranian cities have killed over 25 people from Sunday into Monday, while two people were found dead after missile attacks from Iran on Israel's Haifa.
(With inputs from AFP)
