TEHRAN: US President Donald Trump is ready to “unleash hell” if Iran doesn’t accept a deal to end the Middle East war, the White House warned Wednesday, adding that talks continued despite Tehran reportedly rejecting a proposed US peace plan.
The ramped-up rhetoric dashed hopes of any imminent de-escalation, as the violence on the ground showed no sign of abating after almost four weeks.
“If Iran fails to accept the reality of the current moment... Trump will ensure they are hit harder than they have ever been hit before,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told a new briefing.
“President Trump does not bluff and he is prepared to unleash hell. Iran should not miscalculate again,” she said, while adding that “talks continue.”
Pakistani officials earlier said Islamabad had conveyed to Tehran an American 15-point plan to stop the fighting that began on February 28 with US-Israeli attacks on Iran and has since engulfed the region.
Iran state television cited an unidentified official as saying Tehran had “responded negatively” to the plan and that the war would only end on Tehran’s terms.
“The end of the war will occur when Iran decides it should end, not when Trump envisions its conclusion,” the Iranian official said, according to the English-language broadcaster Press TV, in a report picked up by Iran’s main news agencies.
With thousands more US troops reportedly headed to the Middle East, Iran also threatened to open a new front by targeting shipping the Red Sea, should the US launch a ground invasion.
