Trump Issues Profanity-Laced Ultimatum to Iran as War Enters Fifth Week

Five weeks after joint U.S.-Israeli airstrikes killed Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, President Trump posted a profanity-laced ultimatum to Truth Social on Sunday morning declaring Tuesday "Power Plant Day and Bridge Day" and extending his deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to 8 p.m. ET. "Open the F*****' Strait, you crazy bastards, or you'll be living in Hell — JUST WATCH!" he wrote, signing off with "Praise be to Allah."

The post arrived hours after Trump confirmed the rescue of a second U.S. airman, a colonel and weapons systems officer, from deep inside Iran following the April 3 shootdown of an F-15E Strike Eagle over Isfahan province. The aircraft, from the 48th Fighter Wing at Royal Air Force Lakenheath in Suffolk, England, was lost during a night mission. Recovering the colonel required more than 150 planes, more than 200 munitions, Army Delta Force, and Navy SEAL Team Six. Three U.S. rescue aircraft, including an A-10 Warthog, were hit by Iranian fire; all crews survived. Israel assisted by sharing intelligence and halting its own strikes in the search area. It was the first American combat rescue of this kind in more than twenty years.

Sunday's ultimatum was the latest in a sustained pattern of contradictory signals. On March 21, Trump gave Iran 48 hours to open the strait or face destruction of its power plants. He extended that deadline, issued another warning on Saturday, then extended it again to Tuesday evening. On March 23, he declared the two sides had held "very good and productive conversations regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East," only to warn three days later that Tehran needed to "get serious soon, before it is too late." He told NBC News the "terms aren't good enough yet" for a deal while simultaneously telling CNBC "we are very intent on making a deal." At the White House Easter egg roll Monday, he said the U.S. was "obliterating their country" and that Iran "just doesn't want to say uncle."

Those oscillations have battered energy and equity markets. The Strait of Hormuz carries roughly 20 percent of the world's oil and up to 30 percent of internationally traded fertilizers. After Iran closed the waterway, Dubai crude hit a record $166 per barrel on March 19. Brent crude swung between $102 and $114 per barrel as Trump alternately signaled diplomacy and escalation. California gasoline exceeded $5 per gallon in the second week of March. The S&P 500 rose 3.4 percent last week, its best weekly gain since November, on diplomatic hopes, while the Cboe Volatility Index climbed from below 20 before the war to around 24. Trump's own administration has identified soaring energy prices as a key liability for Republicans ahead of November's midterm elections.

Privately, senior officials have acknowledged they cannot guarantee reopening the strait within Trump's self-imposed four- to six-week deadline for ending the war. The Pentagon is preparing contingency plans for potential ground operations in Iran. On Sunday, a coalition of countries drafted a 45-day ceasefire proposal; Trump had not signed off, and Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei rejected any temporary pause, saying it would allow the U.S. and Israel to re-arm. Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group warned of "mission creep," noting that across all eight rounds of talks in 2025 and 2026, the administration spent fewer than one week total in direct negotiations with Iran.

Trump's infrastructure threats drew swift condemnation. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused the president of "ranting like an unhinged madman on social media" and warned of "possible war crimes." Amnesty International Secretary General Agnes Callamard called the post "revolting," warning that Iranian civilians would face "no heat, no electricity, no water." More than 100 international law experts signed a letter warning that strikes on infrastructure essential to civilian survival may violate international humanitarian law. Since February 28, more than 1,600 Iranian civilians, including at least 244 children, have been killed; Newsweek reported the total above 1,900. Thirteen U.S. service members have also died since the war began.

Trump is scheduled to hold a press conference Monday afternoon with military members at the White House, as his Tuesday deadline narrows the margin for the diplomatic resolution markets are still pricing in.