President Donald Trump’s demand Saturday that Iran “fully open” the Strait of Hormuz by Monday night was rebuffed Sunday morning by Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, who not only appeared to dismiss Trump’s open threat, but issued one of his own.
Following the United States’ surprise attack on Iran last month, the Middle East nation has denied U.S.-aligned ships access to the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping route through which a fifth of the world’s oil trade flows, sending oil prices soaring and reportedly sparking panic within the Trump administration.
On Saturday, Trump took to social media to demand Iran allow U.S.-aligned ships to pass through the shipping channel “within 48 hours,” warning that if his demand was not met, the United States would “obliterate their various power plants, starting with the biggest one first” – a potential war crime.
Despite the gravity of Trump’s threat, Ghalibaf appeared to dismiss the warning, and went on to issue one of his own.
“Immediately after the power plants and infrastructure in our country are targeted, the critical infrastructure, energy infrastructure, and oil facilities throughout the region will be considered legitimate targets and will be destroyed in an irreversible manner, and the price of oil will remain high for a long time,” Ghalibaf wrote in a social media post on X Sunday morning, according to a translation of the original post written in Farsi.
“And throw down what is in your right hand; it will swallow up what they have made.”
Increasing oil prices have reportedly led to Trump looking for a way out of the conflict he initiated, however, such an off-ramp may not exist according to at least one former Trump security advisor. Iran has also vowed to keep fighting in response to the U.S.-Israeli attack.
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