US President Donald Trump has warned that the United States could attack Iran’s bridges and power facilities next week if Tehran does not agree to resume negotiations.
Trump made the remarks in an interview with Fox News, which aired as the US and Iran entered a fourth consecutive day of exchanging attacks.
“Next week it gets really bad for them,” Trump said. “We’re going to knock out all their power plants. We’re going to knock out all their bridges unless they get to the table and negotiate.”
The US president added that energy facilities would also become targets, saying: “I’ll save the energy targets for last, but ultimately we’ll hit energy targets.”
He claimed that US officials had delivered a message to Iranian negotiators on Tuesday evening, warning them to reach an agreement or face further consequences.
“They better make a deal, or you’re not going to have anything left,” Trump said.
The comments drew criticism from UN human rights chief Volker Türk, who warned that attacks on civilian infrastructure could violate international law.
“Under international law, deliberately attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure is a war crime,” Türk said.
The 1949 Geneva Conventions, which set rules for conduct during armed conflicts, prohibit attacks on facilities considered essential to civilian life.
Trump’s latest warning came after he abandoned plans to impose a 20 per cent charge on cargo passing through the Strait of Hormuz, replacing the proposal with what he described as major trade and investment agreements with Gulf countries.
The announcement followed a seven-hour US military operation targeting Iranian sites and the reintroduction of a blockade on Iranian ports.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said its forces struck “dozens” of Iranian military positions near the Strait of Hormuz, describing the operation as an effort to reduce Tehran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping and civilian crews.
Iran’s military said at least seven personnel were killed in US strikes on a base in the southeastern city of Bampur on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Iranian state media reported that Tehran launched missiles and drones at US-linked targets in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain.
Kuwait’s military said it intercepted Iranian drones in the early hours of Wednesday, while Bahrain’s armed forces said it successfully stopped and destroyed aerial attacks.
CENTCOM accused Iran of deliberately targeting civilian vessels in the region, claiming attacks on seven commercial ships left nearly a dozen civilian crew members dead, missing or injured.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) later confirmed carrying out attacks, claiming two tankers had ignored warnings, disabled navigation systems and attempted to travel through a mined route. It did not immediately respond to other accusations from CENTCOM.
Separately, an Indian sailor who went missing after a ship attack off Oman last week was confirmed dead by his family.
The remaining 23 crew members aboard the Cyprus-flagged GFS Galaxy were rescued after the vessel was disabled on Sunday. CENTCOM blamed the IRGC for the incident, while Tehran has yet to comment.
The renewed confrontation between Washington and Tehran has caused oil prices to surge, with tanker movement through the Strait of Hormuz significantly reduced.
The waterway remains a critical global trade route, with Iran accusing the US of interfering with its control over the strait, while Washington argues it is acting to protect international shipping.
On Monday, Trump declared that the US had become the “guardian” of the Strait of Hormuz and announced plans for a 20 per cent cargo fee to fund its protection efforts.
He later reversed the decision, writing on Truth Social:
“I have decided to replace the 20% United States Reimbursement Fee with Trade and Investment Deals that the various Gulf States will be making into the United States.”
“Those Investments will be MASSIVE but, at the same time, extraordinarily good for them, and their future.”
Trump did not provide further details about the proposed agreements.
He also said the Strait of Hormuz remained open to all shipping except Iran and claimed oil supplies were moving “like never before” because of US military power.
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the US blockade had undermined an earlier truce arrangement between the two countries.
“If the US thinks that by tightening its measures against us, its military actions and its economic blockade, we will return to negotiations, it is making a mistake,” he said.
The US first introduced a naval blockade targeting Iranian ports in April as part of efforts to pressure Tehran. Washington later suspended the blockade in June under a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the conflict.
However, disputes over the Strait of Hormuz have since become a major source of tension.
Shipping data showed traffic through the waterway had dropped to its lowest level in two months, while the benchmark Brent crude oil price recorded a sharp increase.
