President Donald Trump has warned that a “whole civilization will die tonight” but said Iran still has time to capitulate ahead of a deadline set for 8 p.m. in Washington.
The American leader issued the stark threat Tuesday, about 12 hours ahead of his deadline for Iran to agree to a deal that includes reopening the Strait of Hormuz or face punishing strikes.
Trump wrote on his social media site: “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”
He added: “I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will.”
But Trump’s statement nonetheless kept the possibility of an off-ramp open, saying that “maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen.”
Hours earlier, Iran's deputy sports minister, Alireza Rahimi, called on youths, artists, and athletes to form human chains at power plants across the country, ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s Tuesday night deadline to reach a deal to end the war.
Rahimi made the comments after Trump warned Iran could be "taken out" if it did not meet his Tuesday night deadline to reach a deal.