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US President Donald Trump on Saturday said Iran had 48 hours left to make a deal on opening the vital Strait of Hormuz or face “Hell.”
“Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, referring to his ultimatum issued on March 26.
“Time is running out — 48 hours before all Hell will reign (sic) down on them,” the president said, adding: “Glory be to GOD!”
Senior Iranian military officer, Gen Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi, echoed Trump’s rhetoric, saying “the gates of hell will open for you”.
Read Also: Iran: US Fighter Jet Shot Down, Govt Offers Reward For Capture
On Saturday Iran fired more missiles at the Gulf States, Iraq and Israel, with falling debris from intercepted missiles causing damage. Since then, more strikes have been reported in Israel, Bahrain, Kuwait and the UAE overnight.
The threats from the US and Iran came as both countries searched for a missing American crew member after a US F-15 fighter jet was shot down over southern Iran on Friday. The pilot has been rescued, according to US media.
Iranian state media reported that at least four people were killed in a US-Israeli airstrike in the same region being searched for the missing US weapon systems officer.
Missile strikes hit telecommunications towers in the city of Dehdasht, Tasnim news agency, which is linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, reported.
Unverified videos on social media show hundreds of people heading to a mountainous area in southwestern Iran to join the search for the missing American. Iranian officials have been urging citizens to help find the missing crew member “alive” and are offering bounties for his capture.
A US A-10 Warthog aircraft that was part of an initial search-and-rescue mission for the downed jet was also shot and damaged, but its pilot was rescued after they ejected over the Gulf.
On 27 March Trump had announced he was pausing attacks on energy plants for 10 days for Iran to “make a deal”.
On Saturday he reiterated his threat on Truth Social that “all Hell will reign down on them” if they failed to do this, or to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 hours.
Iran waved off the threats and rejected Trump’s demand.
Gen Aliabadi, of Iran’s central military command, said Trump’s threat was a “helpless, nervous, unbalanced and stupid action”.
Ebrahim Zolfaghari, a spokesperson for Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, added: “If hostility escalates, the entire region will turn into hell for you; the illusion of defeating the Islamic Republic of Iran will become a quagmire into which you will sink.”
US and Israel continued its bombardment of Iranian military, energy and other industrial sites on Saturday.
In Kuwait, an Iranian drone attack damaged two power generation stations and water desalination plants, the local government said. A statement said the power plants were now offline.
Earlier attacks caused significant damage to a government office complex and a fire at the Kuwaiti oil ministry.
Meanwhile Israel said it was targeted by missiles launched from Iran and that the military had intercepted them.
On Saturday Trump shared a video on his Truth Social platform which he said showed a “massive strike” on the capital Tehran. However, the video appeared to be 24 hours old.
Trump claimed in his post that “many of Iran’s Military Leaders, who have led them poorly and unwisely, are terminated, along with much else”, following the strike.
There has been no response from Tehran to Trump’s claims, nor have the US provided further details to the post.
A United States fighter aircraft has been brought down over Iranian territory, marking the first confirmed loss of a US jet to Iranian air defences since the escalation of the ongoing conflict, according to American officials and Iranian state media reports.
Multiple US sources confirmed the incident to CNN, corroborating claims by Iranian outlets that the aircraft was intercepted and destroyed by the country’s air defence systems.
The aircraft, widely identified in reports and circulating images as an F-15E Strike Eagle, reportedly crashed in or around Khuzestan Province in southwestern Iran, approximately 470 kilometres from the capital, Tehran.
Footage geolocated near a bridge over the Karoon River showed low-altitude military aircraft movements, believed to be part of search-and-rescue or support operations in the aftermath of the incident.
US forces are said to have initiated a combat search and rescue (CSAR) mission involving aircraft and helicopters to locate the crew, believed to consist of two pilots.
Iranian state media, including Fars News and Tasnim News Agency, reported that initial attempts to locate any ejected personnel had not yielded results.
One broadcast on Fars News indicated that a reward had been announced for information leading to the capture of any “enemy pilot or pilots,” raising concerns about the safety of the crew amid ongoing hostilities.
Iranian sources attributed the downing of the aircraft to “advanced and newly developed” air defence systems operated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC.
Read Also: Iran Reveals UAE, Bahrain, Israel Were Targeted In Latest Attacks
Images and video footage circulated by Iranian outlets purported to show debris from the crash, including what appeared to be an ejection seat, although independent verification remains limited.
Earlier claims from Iranian sources suggested the aircraft was an F-35, but available evidence and U.S.-based reporting point to an F-15E.
As of Friday afternoon, neither the Pentagon, United States Central Command, CENTCOM, nor the White House had issued an official statement regarding the incident or the fate of the crew.
Observers note that such silence is typical during active combat search-and-rescue operations in contested areas.
