Trump Says War In Iran Will Not End Until Strait Of Hormuz Politico

Kenji Sato

-Apr 6, 2026, 6:45 PM

trump says war in iran will not end until strait of hormuz politico

Trump tells Iran to open Strait of Hormuz 'or you'll be living in Hell' Editor's note: This page summarizes news of the Iran war for Sunday, April 5. For the latest on the war in Iran, visit USA TODAY's coverage for Monday, April 6. President Donald Trump took to social media on Easter Sunday to applaud the U.S. military's rescue of the second airman whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran — and to issue an expletive-laden threat against the Middle Eastern nation to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

After extending the deadline on his ultimatum that Iran cease its effective blockade on ships passing through the oil route, the president said the regime now has until Tuesday to meet his demands, threatening strikes on critical Iranian infrastructure. "Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!!" Trump wrote in the April 5 post on Truth Social.

"Open the F------ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH!" The president signed off his message, "Praise be to Allah." Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf condemned Trump's threat, claiming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was misleading Trump. "Your reckless moves are dragging the United States into a living HELL for every single family, and our whole region is going to burn because you insist on following Netanyahu's commands," he posted on X.

"Make no mistake: You won’t gain anything through war crimes." The United States and Israel have intensified pressure on Iran over the weekend to open the Strait of Hormuz, which usually carries about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas, or face attacks on energy facilities. Follow USA TODAY for live coverage of the Iran war.

Netanyahu says he spoke with Trump about rescue of US airman Thao Nguyen Netanyahu said he spoke with Trump on Sunday and congratulated him for the "perfectly executed American mission" to rescue a U.S. airman whose fighter jet was shot down over Iran. "The President expressed his appreciation for Israel's help," Netanyahu said in a post on X.

"I am deeply proud that our cooperation on an off the battlefield is unprecedented, and that Israel could contribute to saving a brave American warrior." Trump had announced early Sunday that the second crew member of an F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet that crashed in Iran on April 3 was rescued by U.S. forces.

Crude oil prices jump after Trump threats Thao Nguyen Crude oil prices opened higher in early trading on Sunday after Trump issued new threats against Iran, warning strikes on critical Iranian infrastructure on Tuesday, April 7, if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened. The price of Brent crude, the international benchmark, jumped to $2.4, or 2.2%, to $111.43. The price of U.S. crude oil rose to $3, or 2.7%, to trade at $114.57 per barrel.

Strikes across Middle East region Thao Nguyen Iran expanded its attacks on energy infrastructure in the Gulf, launching drone and missile strikes on petrochemical facilities in Kuwait, Bahrain, and the United Arab Emirates. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps also said they hit an Israeli‑linked vessel at Dubai's Jebel Ali port. In Kuwait, drones sparked fires and caused "severe material damage" at petrochemical plants operated by affiliates of state oil firm Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, according to the company.

In a statement on X, the United Arab Emirates’ Sharjah government said one Nepalese and three Pakistani nationals were injured in a fire caused by falling debris from an intercepted Iranian projectile at Khor Fakkan port. One person was severely wounded and was transported to the hospital, while the others sustained mild to moderate injuries. Contributing: Reuters CAIR calls on Congress to end war following Trump's threats Thao Nguyen In multiple interviews on Sunday, Trump continued to make threats against Iran while pushing for concessions.

Earlier, the president took to social media repeating threats to target Iran's power plants and bridges. In his brief interview with Fox News, Trump said he thinks a deal is possible by Monday, April 6, but if not, he will "take" the country's oil. In another interview with ABC News, Trump said the conflict should be over in days, not weeks, but if not, "we're blowing up the whole country" and there is "very little" off the table.

Following Trump's post on Truth Social on Sunday morning, the Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) called on Congress to reconvene and vote to end the war on Iran. CAIR is a Muslim civil rights and advocacy group based in Washington, DC. "The casual use of 'Praise be to Allah' in the context of violent threats reflects a disturbing willingness to weaponize religious language while simultaneously denigrating Islam and its followers," the organization said in a statement.

Contributing: Reuters Trump says Iran 'got lucky' in shooting down jet James Powel Trump said Iranian forces "got lucky" when they shot down the F-15E Strike Eagle and that officials initially feared that a radio message from a now recovered crew member was a trap in an interview with Axios on Sunday. He told the outlet that the U.S. had "beeping information" on the airman recovered on March 4.

Trump added that a message sent after the airman ejected, which he described as "something a Muslim would say," caused officials to suspect a potential trap. An unnamed defense official told Axios that the radio message from the weapons officer was "God is good." Trump said that those who knew the officer explained that he was religious and that it would make sense for him to say the phrase.

Thousands dead, millions displaced as war continues Kathryn Palmer As the Iran war passes the six-week mark, the death toll now reaches into the thousands across multiple countries in the Middle East. U.S.-based rights group HRANA said 3,540 people have been killed in Iran since the war erupted. It said 1,616 of those have been confirmed as civilians, including at least 244 children. About 1,200 are classified as military fatalities, and another 711 deaths are not categorized. After Iran, the highest death toll is in Lebanon.

Lebanese authorities told Reuters 1,368 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since March 2, including at least 124 children. At least 108 people have been killed in Iraq since the start of the crisis, according to the country's health authorities. Missiles launched from Iran and Lebanon have killed 19 people in Israel, according to its ambulance service. Thirteen U.S. service members have died. Dozens of others have also been killed in the region, including in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, the West Bank, Syria, Oman and Bahrain.

Marjorie Taylor Greene bashes Trump's Iran post Kathryn Palmer Former GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene responded to Trump's expletive-laced social media post, referencing the Easter holiday and accusing top administration officials of "worshipping" the president. "On Easter morning, this is what President Trump posted," Greene shared on X. "Everyone in his administration that claims to be a Christian needs to fall on their knees and beg forgiveness from God and stop worshipping the President and intervene in Trump’s madness.

I know all of you and him and he has gone insane, and all of you are complicit." The once staunch MAGA ally broke publicly with Trump in 2025, in part over his foreign policy decisions. Greene in her social media post argued that the Iran war began as an "unprovoked" attack by the United States and Israel over "nuclear lies," and said Trump's threatened strikes will hurt the Iranian people. "Our President is not a Christian and his words and actions should not be supported by Christians," she said.

"Christians in the administration should be pursuing peace. Urging the President to make peace." Trump says US sent weapons through Kurds Kathryn Palmer Trump told Fox News on Sunday that the United States sent guns to anti-government protesters within Iran through the Kurds – and said he believes the Kurds "kept them." "We sent guns to the protesters, a lot of them. And I think the Kurds took the guns," he told the outlet.

Before the United States and Israel struck Iran in February, massive protests against the Iranian regime – and a violent government crackdown in response – rocked the Middle Eastern nation. There are more than a dozen different Kurdish groups spread across Turkey and the wider region. They have different ideologies, aims and links to political offices, and it wasn't clear which group or groups the president referenced.

Trump again says Iran is negotiating, deal possible soon Kathryn Palmer Trump in a brief interview with Fox News repeated his threats to bomb power plants and bridges throughout Iran unless they reopen the Strait of Hormuz and said the country is in the process of negotiating with the United States. Fox News reported the president said he thinks a deal is possible by Monday, April 6.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran's speaker of the parliament, said in a post on social media following Trump's comments that the only solution is "respecting the rights of the Iranian people and ending this dangerous game." He did not immediately address whether Iran was actively negotiating with the United States. Iran has previously denied it is negotiating with American officials, including on March 23, after Trump said they were engaged in "very good and productive" conversations to end the conflict.

Trump threatens to bomb all of Iran's bridges, power plants in interview Kathryn Palmer Trump said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Sunday that the United States will destroy all of Iran’s power plants and bridges if the government does not come to the negotiating table or reopen the Strait of Hormuz, doubling down on his threats.

“If they don’t come through, if they want to keep it closed, they’re going to lose every power plant and every other plant they have in the whole country,” Trump said in an eight-minute interview with the outlet. “But we are in a position that’s very strong, and that country will take 20 years to rebuild, if they’re lucky, if they have a country,” he said.

“And if they don’t do something by Tuesday evening, they won’t have any power plants and they won’t have any bridges standing.” When asked if he is concerned the people of Iran could suffer if civilian infrastructure is hit, Trump replied, “no, they want us to do it,” arguing that Iranian people are “living in Hell.” Democratic senator warns against 'dangerous' rhetoric Kathryn Palmer In an interview with NBC News' "Meet the Press," Sen.

Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, warned that the Trump administration's public comments in the ongoing Iran war could pose a threat to U.S. troops in the wake of the rescue of two airmen. “This kind of rhetoric is really dangerous, because the likelihood of having downed pilots or others who are captured in a war like this is very high,” Kaine said Sunday.

“And if you send the message that there is ‘no quarter’ for the folks on the other side, that really encourages them to mistreat our folks.” Kaine referred to Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth saying last month that the United States will “keep pushing, keep advancing,” and that there will be “no quarter, no mercy for our enemies.” The senator, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees, has frequently criticized Trump's use of military action and the U.S.' joint war with Iran.

Kaine joined Senate Democrats in recent attempts to force a vote on a war powers resolution to halt the use of military action against Iran unless authorized by Congress. Trump's threats on Iran infrastructure come amid war crime concerns Kathryn Palmer Trump told Iranian officials that Tuesday will be "Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one," placing a date on a weeks-long ultimatum that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face attacks on critical domestic infrastructure.

International law experts and aid groups have warned that intentional destruction of civilian infrastructure can constitute a war crime. In recent weeks, Trump has suggested the United States could hit bridges, power plants and desalination plants if Iran does not make a deal with Washington or lift its effective blockade of the critical oil trading route in the Persian Gulf.

A U.S.-based consortium of more than 100 international law experts said in a joint letter on April 2 that the conduct of Israel, Iran and the United States raises concerns of “serious violations of international law." The experts also pointed to "alarming rhetoric" being used by U.S. officials, including Trump's threats to "obliterate" Iran's power plants. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres told Politico last month that the targeting of energy infrastructure in the war could violate international law, suggesting both sides may have committed war crimes in targeting the resources.

Iran says US planes, Black Hawk hit in rescue operation Kathryn Palmer Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards told the Tasnim news agency that several U.S. aircraft were destroyed during the weekend rescue mission. The outlet is closely affiliated with the guards. Iranian officials said a C-130 military transport plane and two Black Hawk helicopters were among the downed craft, according to Reuters.

The Pentagon did not confirm or deny the reports when contacted by USA TODAY for comment, instead referring to the president's initial social media post early April 5 announcing the second airman's rescue. Trump said that no U.S. forces were killed or injured in the retrieval operation that included "dozens" of aircraft. Second rescued airman 'seriously wounded,' Trump says Kathryn Palmer The second service member rescued by U.S. Special Operations forces who had spent two days inside Iranian territory is “seriously wounded,” Trump said Sunday.

In an update to the operation to retrieve two airmen after their F-15E fighter jet was downed over Iran, the president said in a social media post that the colonel was rescued after the Iranian military had been “looking hard” for him. He added that Iranian forces had been searching “in big numbers” and were “getting close.” The operation to find and extract the second service member involved dozens of aircraft, the president said, and there were no U.S. casualties among the rescue team.

Trump Says War In Iran Will Not End Until Strait Of Hormuz Politico

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