Iran-Israel war LIVE: Iran awaits Trump threat to blow up power plants

At warfare with Iran, President Donald Trump is cycling done an progressively hopeless database of options arsenic helium searches for a solution to the situation successful the Strait of Hormuz.

He has jumped from calls to unafraid the waterway done diplomatic means to lifting sanctions and present escalating to a nonstop menace against civilian infrastructure successful the Islamic Republic.

Trump and his allies importune they were ever prepared for Iran to artifact the strait, yet the Republican president’s erratic strategy has fueled disapproval that helium is grasping for answers aft going to warfare without a wide exit plan. On Saturday came his latest attempt, via an ultimatum to Iran: Open the strait wrong 48 hours oregon the United States volition “obliterate” the country’s powerfulness plants.

Trump’s aides defended the menace arsenic a hard-edged maneuver to property Iran into submission. Opponents framed it arsenic the nonaccomplishment of a president who miscalculated what it would instrumentality to get retired of a geopolitical mire. -- AP

An Iran-backed equipped radical announced connected Monday (March 23, 2026) that it would proceed its five-day intermission connected attacking the U.S. embassy successful Baghdad.

Since the commencement of the warfare successful the Middle East, pro-Iran equipped groups person claimed work for near-daily attacks connected U.S. interests successful Iraq and crossed the region, portion strikes person besides targeted these groups.

On Thursday, Kataeb Hezbollah, designated a “terrorist organisation” by Washington, said it would halt attacking the Baghdad embassy nether definite conditions, including an extremity to attacks connected residential parts of Iraq and the confederate suburbs of Beirut.

The second country is simply a bastion of Lebanon’s Hezbollah, which is besides Iran-backed and is astatine warfare with Israel.

“The deadline fixed to the embassy of American evil volition beryllium extended by an further 5 days,” Kataeb Hezbollah said successful a connection connected Monday (March 23, 2026). -- AFP

U.S. President Donald Trump and his apical officials person offered shifting objectives and reasons for the U.S.-Israeli warfare connected Iran, which critics accidental shows a deficiency of readying for the struggle and its aftermath.

The Iranian subject connected Sunday (March 22, 2026) threatened to wholly unopen down the strategical Strait of Hormuz and onslaught U.S. infrastructure, including vigor facilities successful ‌the Gulf, if U.S. President Donald Trump acts connected threats to people the country’s powerfulness plants.

Mr. Trump connected Saturday (March 21) ​threatened to “obliterate” Iran’s powerfulness plants​ if Tehran did not afloat reopen the Strait of Hormuz wrong 48 hours, suggesting a important escalation hardly a time aft helium talked astir “winding down” the war, present successful its 4th week.

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The U.S. subject declared connected Saturday (March 21, 2026) it had taken retired an Iranian bunker lodging weapons threatening lipid and state shipments successful the Strait of Hormuz, arsenic thousands of Iranians marked Id al-Fitr with prayer.

The U.S. connection appeared designed to calm the concerns of vigor markets and of Washington’s sceptical planetary allies, much than 20 of whom issued a connection vowing to backmost efforts to re-open the cardinal oversea lane.