Trump threatens to ‘obliterate’ Iran’s energy grid if ceasefire not reached ‘shortly’
The Guardian • • nation
Key Points:
- Former US President Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran’s power stations, oil wells, and desalination plants if Tehran does not agree to peace terms soon, while claiming ongoing diplomatic talks with a "more reasonable regime" in Iran.
- Iran rejected US peace proposals as “excessive, unrealistic and irrational,” continuing missile attacks on Israel and warning against US ground operations, particularly the seizure of Kharg Island, a key oil export terminal.
- Human rights groups condemned Trump’s threats to target civilian infrastructure as potential war crimes under international humanitarian law, emphasizing the disproportionate harm such attacks would cause to civilians.
- The conflict has caused significant geopolitical and economic repercussions, including soaring oil prices nearing record monthly gains and growing international calls, including from Egypt and the UK, for an end to the war.
- Violence continues to escalate regionally, with attacks in Kuwait, Israel, Lebanon, and Syria, and casualties among UN peacekeepers in Lebanon, raising fears of a broader and more prolonged Middle East conflict.
