Here’s what I wrote a day ago:
Trump Threatens Strike Power On Iranian Plants If Strait of Hormuz Not Opened Within 24 Hours
And in response, the Iranians threatened that if Trump hits any of its power plants, they will strike power, electricity, desalination, atomic and other plants of every kind throughout the region, including oil and gas production facilities.
More on the President’s threats and Iranian counter-threats can be found here: “Iran threatens to retaliate against Gulf energy and water after Trump ultimatum,” by Maayan Lubell, Alexander Cornwell and Idrees Ali, Reuters, March 22, 2026:
Iran said on Sunday it would strike the energy and water systems of its Gulf neighbours in retaliation if U.S. President Donald Trump follows through with a threat delivered a day earlier to hit Iran’s electricity grid in 48 hours, escalating the three-week-old war.The prospect of tit-for-tat strikes on civilian infrastructure could further rattle global markets when they reopen on Monday morning, and threaten the livelihoods of millions of civilians in the region who rely almost exclusively in some cases on desalination plants for water.After more than three weeks of heavy U.S. and Israeli bombardment that officials say has sharply reduced Iran’s missile capabilities, Tehran continues to demonstrate the ability to carry out attacks. Air raid sirens sounded across parts of northern and central Israel, including in Tel Aviv, and the occupied West Bank overnight on Sunday, warning of incoming missiles from Iran.Hours earlier, the Israeli military said it had completed a wave of strikes on Tehran that targeted a military base as well as weapons production and storage facilities.Trump issued his warning Saturday evening, less than a day after signalling the United States might be considering winding down the conflict, even as U.S. Marines and heavy landing craft are heading to the region.…“If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” Trump posted on social media around 7:45 p.m. EDT (2345 GMT) on Saturday.Iranian media quoted the country’s representative to the International Maritime Organisation as saying the strait remains open to all shipping except vessels linked to “Iran’s enemies”….The United States and Israel say they have seriously degraded Iran’s ability to project force beyond its borders with their three weeks of intensive air strikes. But Tehran fired its first known long-range ballistic missiles with a range of 4,000 km (2,500 miles) on Friday towards a U.S.-British Indian Ocean military base, expanding the risk of attacks beyond the Middle East….The ballistic missiles Iran fired at the military base on Diego Garcia, demonstrating a range of 2,500 miles, can also hit Europe, and it is the Europeans who should now recognize that they, too, have a stake in this war; they too are potentially threatened by Iran and should, as Trump has requested, join in opposing the Islamic Republic, at the very least by helping to free up the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping.
Pope Leo appealed for an end to the conflict. “The death and suffering caused by this war are a scandal to the whole human family,” he said.
What is a real “scandal” is the vaporings of those who, like Pope Leo, want peace at any price and claim that “war never solves anything.” (See what the American Civil War and World War II solved.) The people of Iran have experienced “death and suffering” for 47 years; now they have a chance to be free of their hideous regime, but it will likely require what Pope Leo insists on denouncing, but wiser prelates of the past understood — a just war, begun by America and Israel, and to be continued by the people of Iran themselves.
If before the November elections, the regime in Iran has fallen, there will be much mafficking throughout Iran and outpourings of gratitude by tens of millions of Iranians to the American president. Then Trump’s gamble in entering the war with Operation Epic Fury will be seen to have paid off, and he will be hailed, in Iran, Israel, the UAE, and throughout the Middle East — though likely not along the Democrat-infested banks of the Potomac — as a hero.
But wait — this just in: As of Monday morning, our mercurial president has made an announcement reversing the one he made on Saturday evening, and that I discuss in detail above.
First, that 48-hour limit by which Iran was supposed to have opened the Strait of Hormuz has now been extended by five more days, until Friday, March 27. Second, President Trump wrote on his Truth Social site that the U.S. and Iran have had “very good and productive conversations” that could yield “a complete and total resolution” in the war.
He may have allowed himself to be ensnared in “good and productive conversations” with Iran — i.e., negotiations, though Iran for the moment denies such negotiations are taking place, that will lead to an end of the war well before America’s, and Israel’s, original war aims both as to Iran’s nuclear program, and regime change, are achieved. Meanwhile, the Iranians are counting on drawing those negotiations out so as to make Trump decide to end the war. With each day that passes with the Strait of Hormuz closed to traffic, the catastrophic rise in oil and gas prices worsens. At the same time as the closure of the Strait, Iran has also been inflicting damage on oil and gas facilities in the Gulf Arab states, including Qatar, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Oman, and that too has contributed to the rise in energy prices.
Trump wants a deal with Iran because American voters are becoming increasingly agitated about the terrific rise in energy prices and the world’s economies are in a state of complete uncertainty, not knowing if the energy prices will rise still further or suddenly collapse if the war ends and Iran opens the Strait of Hormuz. Trump has even lifted sanctions on Iranian oil already loaded on ships at sea, allowing 140 million barrels to be sold, as a most inadequate measure to increase supply. But who knows? By next Friday, Trump may turn again, and post on social media this message to Iran: “YOU HAVE A DAY TO OPEN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ OR ELSE WE WILL BOMB EVERY POWER PLANT IN YOUR COUNTRY. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Donald J. Trump.”
More than one threat says
To paraphrase the 1990s arcade game, Mortal Kombat, “Finish them !!!”
Tony says
19 Muslims slaughtered 3000 Americans on 9/11/2001. Islam and its Muslims are enemies of America and the West. Allah in Qur’an 8:39 says, “And engage in war with them[Non-Muslims] until there will not be sedition and the religion will be completely to Allah…”
࿗Infidel࿘ says
On one hand, the US claims that it will be holding talks w/ Iran in Islamabad, Pakistan. (They’ll need to have the meeting venue fortified, since Pakis are fervently pro-islamic republic (even if they’re sunnis) and there could be mobs storming that venue)
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603232659
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603234381
Even an Israeli news channel claims that Iran is ready to offer major concessions on the nukes
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603233173
However, all of that is denied by the islamic leadership in Iran
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603236278
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603232581
In fact, on top of that, they have doubled down on the rhetoric, and are hitting US bases again
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603230179
https://www.iranintl.com/en/202603238043
I know that some of this may be an exercise in misdirection by the president, but I just don’t see how talks are even possible. Whoever they are talking to on the islamic republican side, be it Pezeshkian or Araghchi or Ghalibaf, don’t seem to be calling the shots. So it’ll just be one more wasted – and potentially dangerous – trip to Islamabad by Witkoff or whoever (for this one, Tiffany Trump’s father-in-law Massad Boulos, who was thought to be supportive of Hizbullah, might be more useful there than Jared Kushner)
Instead, have paratroopers land on Kharg island and capture it, and repel any IRGC attempts to take it back. Essentially, just stop all shipments out of there until there is a change in regime. That would be the quickest way to end this war and free up Hormuz traffic once again
Buckeye says
Trump just said, that he will give control of the Hormuz to Iran, who willl charge a fee of two million per ship. And Iran and America will control it together…. Together. Yea together.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
Buckeye
If Reza Pahlavi comes to power in Iran, then I’d be fine w/ a lower toll ($2M is too much) being charged to help Iran get back on its feet
Buckeye says
Infidel,
Dude. Trump literally said, him and the supreme leader will together control the Hormuz. Yes that’s what the man said.
Keys says
“It’s a heartache, nothing but a heartache …” (Bonnie Tyler)
“It’s a heartache
Nothing but a heartache
Hits you when it’s too late
Hits you when you’re down
It’s a fool’s game
Nothing but a fool’s game
Standing in the cold rain
Feeling like a clown”
———————————
It’s a Hudna,
Nothing but a Hudna
Dealing with Iran
Just another scam
It’s a fool’s game
Nothing but a fool’s game
Believing this regime
Got to be insane
Keys says
This sure sounds a lot like 1938 “peace in our time” by Neville Chamberlain.
Hope it is not!
Namer says
He wont hit the desalinization plants because they provide 90% of Irans drinking water
Hank says
Any reason not to join the momentum of the Iranian people to get rid of the Muslim jihadists in power? They are the boots on the ground who know the place. The Iranian people must be Islamophobic, more than ever now, after the jihadists massacred tens-of-thousands of them or have we missed something.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
I believe that they’ve been told to wait until they get the call from Reza Pahlavi, or maybe, wait until it’s safe for him to return to Iran. Which is wise: I’m not for needless bloodletting before the regime is toppled: Armin Navabi, who does a daily show w/ Goldie Ghamari on the events in and about Iran, said as much here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cteuq3p4ZNw
Incidentally, yesterday, there was another interesting opinion video from him, In it, he made the case that while it is ideal that Iran’s energy infrastructure not be damaged, the Iranian people should not make their support for the war contingent on that. He said that the real asset of Iran are its people (echoing what Reza Pahlavi said), and that if the war ends w/o toppling the regime, that more people would be slaughtered by it. Essentially, that the Iranian people could rebuild, in say 10-20 years, any infrastructure, but they can’t recover the people they lose if the regime isn’t overthrown
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jf5zlv3vG7k
Walter Sieruk says
What ! Had President Trump actually said that is having “productive conversions ” with that the officials of the horrific cruel and murderous tyrannical regime of Iran. ? Has or President lost his mind ?
First, President Trump has more than enough information to know and understand that even an attempt to have genuine productive worthwhile negotiations with those highly disingenuous deceptive and outright liars of those despots of that Islamic tyranny is an action of fertility as well as a complete waste of time and effort .
Second , after mass murders ordered by those tyrants of that Islamic regime,, it would be very wrong to let them escape punishment ,in any way, furthermore, that Islamic regime need to be and should be totally destroyed..
For the Iranian people do have every right to overthrow that brutal cruel oppressive malicious and murderous regime of Iran, and then establish a legitimate, genuine, government, which ensures and respects the basic human rights of its citizens.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
Walter
I commented on it a bit in today’s 7am post about Iran. Essentially, the goal isn’t to have talks – which the Iranians have rejected anyway, but to set different factions of the regime against each other, and start an internecine fratricide within them. Some of the Iranian podcasters that I watch have also agreed that we’re now in the regime-change phase of this war. w/ various top leaders, like the Khameneis, Larijani,… taken out
That is the only scenario where what the president is doing makes sense
Walter Sieruk says
President Trump regarding of fantasy of having “productive conversions” with the representatives of those despots in power that hostile Islamic regime of Iran . So, President then has fantasy of folly and foolishness and he seems no to know it .
Our President being a Bible respecting man should look up the third chapter of Genesis ,as an allegory,,,in which Satan talked with Eve , through the serpent. The result of those talks in disaster for Eve and her husband and for all humankind. In other words it’s best and wisest to have no dialogue the Devil.
Having conversions with them , who speak for those tyrants of Iran, is like Eve talking with the serpent ,therefore with Satan Those dictators on Iran and literally son of Satan , Therefore, the result of such talks if continued will be nothing but a disaster for America, a disaster for Israel, a disaster for the Iranian people ,anda disaster for the world.
Walter Sieruk says
After al the American and Israeli airstrikes and the horroric tyranny is about to collapse , it would now be totally nonsensical to have negotiations with that “mullah regime.” It’s now time to finish the job as well as a duty to the Iranian people and completely destroy that horrendous tyrannical Islamic regime of Iran , once and for all . As it had been ,rightly and wisely said “Half measures in war are folly and madness.”
Walter Sieruk says
Remember World War II that near the end of that war there was no US /Nazi conversions going on .
The only “peace terms ” that were acceptable were an “unconditional surrender ” of the enemy . That Nazi regime went down in total defeat . That is what should to done to that Islamic tyranny which is officially called “The Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Let’s face it, those still in power in that Islamic regime will never change , they will only accept to appear reasonable . In in other words, they will “fake it” to remain in power
David M says
I’m guessing this is Trump just saying this so he can get out with some face before the world’s economy is destroyed. I’m hoping that is the case, he needs to end this now.
WPM says
It must be ended with the total defeat of the current Iranian Islamic jihadist reign crushed .We America must install a leader who is total secular ,and willing to keep jihadist at bay in this land and work honestly with western leaders. This cannot be like Iraq or Afghanistan or Liberia where we leave a vacuum to be filled by jihadist leaders who spread war thru the region and export terrorism aka jihad to the west. Now for the moment we have many frien-a- mies Qatar and other Arab states want some stability in the area .It is hurting their economy ,I do not think they see a current violent Shiite lead country that is now throwing missiles willy Nellie into their countries as a good thing .It must end quickly ,Trump needs important infrastructure left in place for the next leaders of Iran and Iran on whole to be economical able to recover.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
I think Pahlavi is the best we’ve got. It doesn’t make sense to install a dictator who does what Ataturk did next door in Turkey: that’s almost how they got 1979. Pahlavi’s solution seems to be the best – have a secular, democratic government, while giving all Iranians the right to worship – or not – whoever they choose. Obviously, those would have to come w/ safeguards/limits to what the residual muslims can do, and hopefully, those residual muslims become as tame as the ones in the -stans
David M says
This little war may be ok for you in America, let me tell you something about being in Australia now. Our petrol is $2.50 a litre, diesel is $3.00 a litre. Petrol stations all across Australia are running dry. If farmers can’t get diesel for their machines food doesn’t get to the shops. That means people go hungry. Study the Vietnam war, this is Vietnam all over again. Iran has the power to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed as long as they like. Iran can destroy all the desalination plants of neighbouring countries..This would kill millions of people. They can destroy all the infrastructure around them, this will send the world economy into a severe depression. Get the hell out of there Trump & let Israel fight its own war if they want to.
WPM says
China gets most of its oil thru that region .There are oil rigs off the coast of California that have not pump oil in years because of California environmental laws talk of reopening them .Without America supporting Israel this war can not be won .The oil from Canada that is now going to China could go towards Australia .There is oil in Greenland untapped by Denmark .You ok with terrorism and jihadism exported and supported by the Iranian leaders over the last 47 years ?The other Middle Eastern countries want this Shiite terror factory of a country shut down it hurts them too. Iran just launched a missile at an American outpost in the India ocean about 2000k away from Iran .It hit nothing but that range could hit into western Europe. Gas has gone up about 35 percent in most places America .,Hopefully the war is resolved over the next 4 weeks ,to do so it must be in America .Who will lead the country is the important issue after the war.
gravenimage says
Apologia for evil–no real surrpise.
Karen Dowden says
Absolute nonsense. I cannot figure it out! What is DJT thinking! Did his brain take off to LA LA LAND?? You cannot negotiate with a terrorist. Or did the other Islamic nations in the area ask him to stop so Iran will cease to target them??
Craziness!!
OLD GUY says
Yes, there is only one thing these islamic leaders recognize is POWER. Trump needs to keep hitting them until they fold.
WPM says
Truth they have no respect for the “weak horse”! Until they where push out of Europe in the battle of Vienna around 1682 they where a threat to western world .They only understand force and war and will only submit to it .
gravenimage says
Trump Says He’ll Blow Up Every Power Plant in Iran, Then Claims He’s Having ‘Productive Conversations’ With Iranians
………………………………………….
Hard to know what is really going on here…