Ultimatum, war crimes, oil, NATO: what Donald Trump said about the war in Iran

US President Donald Trump threatened on Monday to destroy "all of" Iran during a press conference, as he set a Tuesday evening ultimatum before bombing energy infrastructure in the Islamic Republic.

Iran "could be completely destroyed in a single night," which could be Tuesday, Donald Trump warned on Monday, April 6, during a press conference. The US president had already threatened the previous day to strike Iranian power plants and bridges if the Islamic Republic did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz by 8 p.m. Washington time on Tuesday (midnight GMT Wednesday).

The US military can destroy bridges and power plants in Iran "in four hours" if it wants to, he claimed.

"Ready to suffer"

On the 38th day of the war, which has claimed several thousand lives in the Middle East, the Israeli-American offensive on Monday targeted energy infrastructure in Iran, with Donald Trump asserting that the Iranians supported the "continuation of the strikes" and that they were "ready to suffer" to bring down the current regime.

A few hours earlier, when questioned by a journalist about his threat to destroy power plants, he had stated that he was "not worried" about the risk of committing war crimes.

Any strike targeting civilian infrastructure, particularly energy facilities, is "illegal" and "unacceptable," European Council President Antonio Costa reiterated.

But for Donald Trump, the "war crime" would be allowing Iran to acquire nuclear weapons. He also offered another justification, referring to the Iranian authorities' repression of protests: "They kill protesters. They're animals."

Earlier in the day, Iranians and Americans had almost simultaneously rejected offers of a truce.

The White House, confirming that mediating countries had proposed a 45-day ceasefire, announced that Donald Trump had not "endorsed" this idea. "It's not good enough yet, but it's a very significant step," the US president nevertheless stated.

According to the American news site Axios, Turkish, Egyptian and Pakistani mediators have discussed a two-phase proposal: a 45-day ceasefire to first allow for negotiations before leading to an agreement to end the war, which began on February 28 with strikes by Israel and the United States against Iran.

The Iranian news agency IRNA, for its part, claimed that Tehran had rejected a ceasefire proposal, the details of which were not specified, put forward by Pakistan. An Iranian military spokesperson warned that Tehran would continue hostilities "as long as political leaders deem it appropriate."

They did not elaborate on these conditions, but in recent weeks, Iranian parliamentarians had proposed imposing transit fees and taxes on ships in the strait.

170 military aircraft in total

In the White House briefing room, he asserted that Iranian leaders were negotiating in "good faith." But he also accused Iranian officials of habitually "deceiving" American presidents. The billionaire further described the communication difficulties with these leaders, claiming that the negotiations were conducted "like 2,000 years ago with children carrying messages back and forth."

If Donald Trump met with journalists on Monday, it was primarily to boast about the spectacular rescue operation of an American airman, which allowed him to sing the praises of the military while the conflict is unpopular with the majority of Americans.

The mission has "captured the attention of the whole world," rejoiced the former reality TV host.

He gave many details - including the involvement of more than 170 military aircraft in total and the destruction of two aircraft that the US military was forced to abandon on site.

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, using his usual vocabulary that was sometimes religious and sometimes masculine, drew a parallel between the rescue of the aviator and the resurrection of Jesus Christ, celebrated at Easter by Christians.

The U.S. intelligence agency (CIA) conducted a "diversionary operation" to "sow confusion" among the Iranians, while the search continued for the two airmen whose plane had been shot down, said its director John Ratcliffe.

During his press conference, the US president also issued threats against journalists who revealed the ongoing search for a crew member whose aircraft was shot down on Friday in southwestern Iran, as well as their source.

At the press room podium, the former businessman indicated that there was a plan in which the United States would collect a toll in the Strait of Hormuz, without further details.

The head of intelligence for the Revolutionary Guards killed

On the ground, strikes continued on both sides. Without waiting for the end of the American ultimatum, Israel targeted facilities at the South Pars site in Assalouyeh (south), which, according to Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, provides "about half of the country's petrochemical production."

The Iranian news agency Fars reported "several explosions" at the massive site, which also houses the country's largest gas facility. No casualties were reported, and the Iranian news agency IRNA stated that the fire was "under control."

"If attacks against civilian targets continue, the next phases of our offensive and retaliatory operations will be far more devastating and widespread," warned the spokesman for the Iranian military command.

In addition to infrastructure, Iranian leaders were targeted. The Revolutionary Guard announced that their intelligence chief, Majid Khademi, had been killed and vowed to avenge his death with "a major retaliation." Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who remains out of public view, paid tribute to him in a written message.

In the Gulf countries, which are being attacked daily by Iran that accuses them of helping the American army, Kuwait said it had been targeted by missiles and drones, injuring six people.

In Israel, rescuers reported finding four dead people under the rubble of a building hit by an Iranian missile in Haifa (north).

Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed to have launched a new attack against Israel, jointly with Iran and Lebanese Hezbollah, describing "a salvo of cruise missiles and drones targeting several vital military sites."

In Lebanon, another front paying a heavy price for the war, a strike again targeted the south of Beirut, after an Israeli warning, while the human toll of the war with the pro-Iranian Hezbollah approaches 1,500 dead.