Trump Says ‘Hell Will Reign Down’ on Iran If It Doesn't Reopen Strait of Hormuz in 48 Hours

Around one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas passes through the Strait of Hormuz.

Published: 4/4/2026, 11:41:02 AM EDT

Trump Says ‘Hell Will Reign Down’ on Iran If It Doesn't Reopen Strait of Hormuz in 48 Hours — President Donald Trump speaks about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House on April 1, 2026. (Alex Brandon/Pool via Getty Images)

President Donald Trump on April 4 warned the Iranian regime that it must open the Strait of Hormuz in two days if it wants to avoid escalating tensions.

“Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.

“Time is running out - 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them. Glory be to GOD!”

The Strait of Hormuz is a crucial passageway located just south of Iran through which around one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas passes.

Senior Israeli officials told Epoch Magazine in Israel on April 3 that efforts to reach a peace deal between Washington and Tehran have not been successful.

The White House has previously warned that if the Iranian regime did not reopen access to commercial traffic in the waterway, its energy infrastructure would be hit.

Strikes could target Iran’s oil wells, power plants, and critical oil infrastructure on Kharg Island unless the strait is reopened.

Trump suggested on April 3 that it would be easy for the United States to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, even though America doesn’t rely on it too much.

“With a little more time, we can easily OPEN THE HORMUZ STRAIT, TAKE THE OIL, & MAKE A FORTUNE. IT WOULD BE A ‘GUSHER’ FOR THE WORLD???” Trump wrote in an April 3 post on Truth Social.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi suggested that escalated strikes would not make the regime surrender and instead could hurt the reputation of the United States.

Tehran has touted that the waterway is a strategic asset that will “not revert to its former status,” according to a statement published on Saturday by Iranian news website Nour News, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The statement suggested that Iran’s armed forces will manage the waterway and “no country has the right to pass” without Tehran’s permission.

Before the conflict started on Feb. 28, the United States and Europe were buying about 3 percent and 4 percent, respectively, of the crude moving through the strait. Asia received 91 percent of the oil and gas that were shipped through the waterway, according to a U.S. Energy Information Administration analysis based on Vortexa tanker-tracking data from the first half of 2025.

Energy operations across the region have stalled as global oil prices have surged since the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against the Iranian regime.

In March, roughly 10 percent of the pre-war level traffic successfully traveled through the Strait, according to data from Marine Traffic and Kepler.

From The Epoch Times