Trump threatens to restart war as Iran rails against Israeli minister
Days after the peace deal with Iran was signed, Donald Trump has already threatened to kickstart the war when 60 days have passed.
As Trump made his threat, hardliners in Iran are already pushing to close off the Strait of Hormuz again.
Donald Trump has hit back at criticism of his peace deal with Iran. AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta
The much-maligned peace deal appeared to give Iran just about everything they wanted, and did not go into any meaningful detail about their nuclear weapons program.
“It’s 60 days, they have to make a deal,” Trump told reporters.
“Otherwise, we will do things that won’t make them happy, but I don’t think it’s going to get to that.”
Overnight on Truth Social, the US president sought to change the record on the negotiations.
“We didn’t meet out of desperation, Iran did. They are FINISHED!” he wrote.
“We’ll play out the 60 days. They get no money, not ten cents!”
Scheduled negotiations between Vice President JD Vance and an Iranian delegation in Switzerland have been postponed.
Iran reportedly postponed the meeting after violence flared up again in the Israel-Lebanon conflict.
That fury only heightened after a tweet from Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
Displaced people fleeing Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon. AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari
Ben-Gvir lashed out after Hezbollah militants killed four Israeli soldiers.
“For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep. All of Lebanon must burn!” he wrote.
“Enough with the ping-pong. In the Middle East, you don’t win with measured responses and restraint –you need to go berserk. To obliterate. To crush the terror.”
The tweet was condemned by Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi.
“This is not a rant by a random genocidal lunatic. It’s a public post by the national security minister of the Israeli regime,” Araghchi said.
“The genocidal death cult headquartered in Tel Aviv is a threat to all of humanity. It threatens all humans. Its only interest is permanent war.”
UK Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper called Ben-Gvir’s statement “horrendous and abhorrent”.
Ships are anchored off the Omani city of Muscat as they wait the green light to go through the Strait of Hormuz. Getty Images
Meanwhile, Iranian news agency Tasnim has called on the Strait of Hormuz to be closed and the deal with the US suspended.
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“Every minute that the Strait of Hormuz remains open is a major loss,” the editorial read.
“Close the strait and contain America at this very first step.”
Tasnim is associated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a hardline paramilitary element within Iran.
Twenty-five ships passed through the Strait on Thursday, a fraction of the pre-war number.
Ships are required to follow a route sanctioned by Iran that takes them close to the Iranian coastline.
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