With less than 24 hours to go before his deadline for Iran to re-open the Strait of Hormuz, US President Donald Trump took to Truth Social Tuesday to deliver a final ultimatum to Tehran. “A whole civilisation will die tonight,” he wrote.
On Monday, Trump had warned Iran that if it does not lift the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday the US would attack power plants and bridges across the country.
Rejecting the American proposal for a 48-hour ceasefire, Tehran instead put forth a 10-point response. It proposed a permanent end to the war, lifting of sanctions, and a framework to ensure safe passage for ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
As the war in the Gulf entered its 38th day, the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz now threatens to push the ongoing conflict to a point of no return.
Countdown to Trump’s Iran deadline | What happened
11.58 pm: Iran thanks China, Russia for UNSC veto
Iran’s Mission to the UN thanked Russia and China for ‘standing firmly on the right side of history’ by exercising their veto to block the resolution on the Strait of Hormuz.
“By blocking a flawed draft, they upheld the UN Charter and prevented the Security Council from being misused to legitimise US aggression under the pretext of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf,” Tehran’s Mission said in a post on X.
Iran expresses its appreciation to China and Russia for their responsible conduct and today’s principled use of the veto in the UN Security Council.
By blocking a flawed draft, they upheld the UN Charter and prevented the Security Council from being misused to legitimise U.S.…
— I.R.IRAN Mission to UN, NY (@Iran_UN) April 7, 2026
11.10 pm: Hormuz resolution was ‘flawed’, Iran tells UNSC
Iran’s Ambassador to the United Nations Saeid Iravani told the UN Security Council that the “draft resolution put before the Council was flawed, factually, legally and politically”.
The draft, he said, was “entirely one-sided, biased, and indefensible”.
Iravani added, “It (draft resolution) distorts the realities on the ground while falsely attribution (sic) responsibility to Iran, the victims of the aggression while deliberately ignoring the root causes of the current crisis. The text unjustifiably and misleadingly portrays Iran lawful measures in the Strait of Hormuz, which have been taken in exercise of its inherent right of self defence in accordance with the UN Charter as threats to international peace and security. At the same time the text seeks to legitimise subsequent unlawful action by the aggressors and their allies on the pretext of safeguarding freedom of navigation and maritime safety in the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf.”
Iran’s Ambassador also told the UNSC that the personal envoy of UN Secretary-General António Guterres is currently en route to Tehran to pursue consultations.
11 pm: Progress in US-Iran talks in last 24 hours, reports Axios
Citing an unnamed US official, an unnamed Israeli official and two other sources privy to the talks, Axios reported Tuesday that there had been progress in the past 24 hours in negotiations between the US and Iran. The report said thinking in the White House has shifted from ‘can we get there?’ to ‘can we get there by 8 o’clock (Trump’s deadline)’.
On Monday, Trump had in a profanity-laced post on Truth Social warned Tehran: “Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell – JUST WATCH!”
10.50 pm: Iranians form human chains around bridges, power plants
Visuals emerging from Iran show civilians forming human chains around bridges and power plants at various locations ahead of Trump’s Hormuz deadline.
The previous day, Alireza Rahimi, who Iranian state media identified as the secretary of the Supreme Council of Youth and Adolescent, had urged artists and athletes to form human chains at power plants across the country. “Power plants, that are our national assets and capital, regardless of any taste or political viewpoint, belong to the future of Iran and to the Iranian youth,” Rahimi reportedly said in a video statement.
Iranian Musician, Ali Ghasmari plays next to a power plant, as Trump threatens Iran with war crimes including destroying power plants. pic.twitter.com/QIPnAPNiKv
— Iran Embassy in Thailand ☫ (@IranInThailand) April 7, 2026
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, without referring to Rahimi’s call to action, wrote on X Tuesday: “More than 14 million proud Iranians have so far registered to sacrifice their lives to defend Iran. I too have been, am, and will remain devoted to giving my life for Iran.”
#WATCH | Iran | People seen forming human chains across several Iranian cities, gathering on bridges and around power plants as U.S. strikes on Iran intensified amid President Donald Trump's deadline
Source: (Reuters via Pool via Wana) pic.twitter.com/uUk4AGvz1y
— ANI (@ANI) April 7, 2026
10.35 pm: White House says ‘only Trump knows where things stand’
Hours after Trump issued an ultimatum to Tehran, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Al Jazeera, “Only the president knows where things stand and what he will do.”
“The Iranian regime has until 8PM Eastern Time to meet the moment and make a deal with the United States,” said Leavitt.
10.30 pm: Deeply regret failure of UNSC resolution, says UAE
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) Mission to the UN said Tuesday that Abu Dhabi “deeply regrets that the UN Security Council failed today to endorse a clear framework for international cooperation in ending Iran’s illegal attacks and threats to the global economy by adopting a draft resolution demanding the immediate cessation of all attacks on vessels and attempts to impede freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”
Adding, “The Security Council’s failure to act does not diminish the urgency of this crisis or the UAE’s resolve.”
The UAE deeply regrets that the UN Security Council failed today to endorse a clear framework for international cooperation in ending Iran’s illegal attacks and threats to the global economy by adopting a draft resolution demanding the immediate cessation of all attacks on… pic.twitter.com/YT5BuEeIkD
— UAE Mission to the UN (@UAEMissionToUN) April 7, 2026
9.45 pm: China, Russia veto UNSC resolution on Hormuz
China and Russia have vetoed a UN Security Council resolution aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The resolution was seen as a ‘watered-down’ version of the one initially drafted by Gulf countries that sought to authorise the use of force to reopen the critical shipping choke point.
Of the 15 UNSC members (5 permanent and 10 non-permanent), 11 voted in favour of the resolution, while Pakistan and Colombia abstained, and Russia and China exercised the veto.
The resolution was drafted by Bahrain, which holds the rotating presidency of the UNSC.
9.30 pm: White House denies intent to deploy ‘nuclear weapons’
The White House Rapid Response has denied that the US is considering the use of nuclear weapons in Iran, hours after Trump issued an ultimatum that “a whole civilisation will die tonight” if Tehran does not lift the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz by 8pm (Eastern Time).
The White House Rapid Response wrote on X: “Literally nothing @VP said here ‘implies’ this (nuclear use), you absolute buffoons.” This was a reference to Vance’s remarks.
“They’ve (Iran) got to know we’ve got tools in our toolkit that we so far haven’t decided to use. The President of the United States can decide to use them, and he will decide to use them if the Iranians don’t change their course of conduct,” Vance had said in Budapest.
Vance also said there are two “pathways” to achieve American objectives in Iran. “…I think pathway one is where the Iranians decide they’re going to be a normal country. They’re not going to fund terrorism anymore. They’re going to be part of the world system of commerce and exchange…That’s option A.
“Option B is that the Iranians don’t come to the table and they stay committed to terrorism, to terrorising their neighbors, not just Israel but of course their Arab neighbors too. Then the economic situation in Iran is going to continue to be very, very bad. And frankly, it will probably get worse.”
Literally nothing @VP said here "implies" this, you absolute buffoons https://t.co/7JU3wXMaWX
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) April 7, 2026
9.20 pm: No party should target civilians, says Canadian PM
With hours to go for Trump’s Hormuz deadline, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters in Brampton, Ontario, that Canada expects all parties in this conflict not to target civilians or civilian infrastructure. He also said about negotiations between Iran and the US, “…there is often a gap between what’s said publicly and what’s happening privately.”
Asked about his message to Trump who issued an ultimatum to Tehran earlier in the day, Carney responded: “The first is that Canada expects all parties in this conflict, in any conflict, to respect international laws, the rules of engagement, that means not targeting certainly civilians or civilian infrastructure and we urge all parties in this war to follow those responsibilities and it’s a point that we have made both publicly and privately.
“There is a, I’ll just observe, that there are some negotiations going on and that there is often a gap between what’s said publicly and what’s happening privately. We’re not at the center of these negotiations although we have visibility to them. However they unfold in the coming hours, in the coming days, in the coming weeks, those negotiations, those discussions, those movements, as it must towards a cessation of hostilities and a re-establishment of security and peace in the region, those international responsibilities, those humanitarian responsibilities remain for all parties throughout that period.”
When another reporter asked him if he regretted Canada’s initial support to the ongoing war in the Gulf, Carney said: “The initial point which we made is the grave threat that the Iranian regime has posed, not just threat but the actual acts of the Iranian regime over the course of more than four decades, the threat to peace and security in the broader Middle East, one of the largest state sponsors of terrorism in the region and more broadly, terrorism that has taken the lives of Canadian citizens including in the downing of the Ukrainian airliner a few years ago, so this was the first point that we were making was the desirability of the ending of that state-sponsored terrorism and the nuclear ambitions of Iran, that remains the case.
“It has always been the case though that Canada makes the distinction, a fundamental distinction as others do, between those objectives and obligations under international law and the respect for human rights which would be in consistent, well, I’ll just refer to my previous comment.”
LIVE: Building stronger communities • EN DIRECT : Bâtir des collectivités plus fortes https://t.co/KT9d9Z6JuE
— Mark Carney (@MarkJCarney) April 7, 2026
8.35 pm: Trump tells Fox News ‘8 pm is happening’
In a telephonic conversation with Bret Baier of Fox News, US President Donald Trump reiterated his warning that the US will strike energy and civilian infrastructure in Iran if Tehran does not give in to his deadline.
“…he said, 8 pm is happening. That’s what he said,” Baier was quoted as having said. Referring to Trump, he added, “He (Trump) said, it is, if we get to that point, there is going to be an attack like they have not seen. Now he’s sticking to that at this point. Now he said if negotiations move forward today and there is something concrete, that could change.”
7.50 pm: Indian Embassy in Iran issues advisory
India’s diplomatic mission in Tehran issued an advisory Tuesday asking all Indian nationals still in Iran to “stay where they are for the next 48 hours, avoiding all electric, military installation and upper floors of multi-storey buildings…”
⚠️ Advisory as on 07 April 2026. pic.twitter.com/xsrpoOvx0f
— India in Iran (@India_in_Iran) April 7, 2026
7.45 pm: Israel struck civilian infra in Iran, says Netanyahu
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised address Tuesday that Israeli forces targeted railways and bridges in Iran, which he claimed were used by the IRGC. He also said Israeli forces “destroyed transport aircraft and dozens of helicopters”.
Shortly after, Israeli army said on Telegram that it struck eight bridge sections in Iran including in Tehran, Karaj, Tabriz, Kashan and Qom, claiming they were used by IRGC.
The Israeli army also admitted to The Times of Israel that it struck a synagogue in Tehran earlier in the day, claiming its target was a senior Iranian commander.
🎯STRUCK: 8 bridge segments utilized by the Iranian terror regime for transporting weapons & military equipment.
The IDF struck 8 bridge segments in several areas, including Tehran, Karaj, Tabriz, Kashan, & Qom. Prior to the strike, several steps were taken to mitigate harm to… pic.twitter.com/kDzkRhMFTD
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) April 7, 2026
7.30 pm: Iran says it struck Saudi compound
Iran says it has struck a petrochemical facility in Saudi Arabia’s Jubail as retaliation against US and Israeli strikes against Iranian oil and gas facilities the previous day. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it deployed drones and missiles for the strike Tuesday.
The strike reportedly caused a fire at the facility in Jubail.
Authorities in Saudi Arabia were yet to issue an official statement confirming the strikes, though the defence ministry said it had intercepted four drones in recent hours.
Meanwhile, sirens were sounded in parts of northern and southern Israel following drone and missile launches by Iran and Hezbollah. The Lebanese armed group also said in a statement that its fighters are engaged in fighting with Israeli forces outside the city of Bint Jbeil. Last month, Tel Aviv declared that it would occupy parts of southern Lebanon to Israelis living in northern Israel who had to flee their homes following strikes by Hezbollah to avenge the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
7 pm: Trump issues chilling ultimatum to Iran
Hours after the US struck military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island, US President Donald Trump warned Tehran in a post on Truth Social that “a whole civilisation will die tonight” if it does not accept the US proposal for a 48-hour ceasefire by Tuesday 8pm (Eastern Time).
“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” he wrote.
Confirming the strikes on Kharg Island, US Vice President J.D. Vance maintained that the US did not target oil facilities there. “We’re not going to strike energy and infrastructure targets until the Iranians either make a proposal that we can get behind or don’t make a proposal,” he said in Budapest. Iran, said Vance, is trying to “exact as much economic pain on the world as possible,” but that the US has the ability to exact “much greater pain”.
Read this report by Debdutta Chakraborty for more details
Let him not do the unthinkable. Or something approaching it.