Strait of Hormuz tensions as US and Iran warn of critical infrastructure attacks

The United States and Iran traded warnings over possible strikes on critical infrastructure as the Middle East war entered its fourth week. Iran said it would close the Strait of Hormuz if President Donald Trump follows through on threats to attack power plants, after he set a deadline to open the waterway. Israeli officials reported continued Iranian missile fire.

The United States and Iran traded threats on Sunday over key facilities, as the Middle East war entered its fourth week. Iran warned it would close the Strait of Hormuz fully if the US hit Iranian power plants. President Donald Trump also set a deadline to reopen the strait. The conflict has raised risks for energy supplies and civilians.

The war, launched by the US and Israel on Feb. 28, has killed over 2,000 people. It has shaken the global economy and pushed oil prices higher. The latest warnings suggested a sharper phase, despite Trump saying last week operations might slow. Iranian-backed Hezbollah also reported a role in strikes, adding pressure across borders.

Strait of Hormuz and power plants threats

Iran has practically closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key route from the Persian Gulf. About one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through it. Attacks on ships and threats of more strikes have nearly stopped tanker traffic. Some major producers have reduced output because shipments cannot move, affecting Europe and Asia too.

Trump late Saturday set a 48-hour deadline to open the strait. Trump warned that if Iran refused, the US would destroy its power sites. Trump said: "POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!\" The US says Iran’s Revolutionary Guard controls large parts of infrastructure and uses it for the war effort.

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf replied on X with another warning. Qalibaf said if Iran’s infrastructure is hit, then sites across the region will be targeted. Qalibaf said \"energy and desalination facilities\" would be seen as legitimate targets and \"irreversibly destroyed.\" Iranian officials also said non-enemy vessels would still get safe passage.

Legal scholars said international law limits attacks on civilian-benefiting power plants. Such sites can be targeted only if military gain outweighs civilian harm. The US also tried to ease market pressure by lifting some sanctions on Iranian oil at sea. Still, shipping disruption kept economic concerns high across many states.

Israel Iran missiles and nuclear site concerns

Iran said missiles hit the Negev Desert late Saturday as retaliation. State-run media linked the strike to an earlier attack on Iran’s main nuclear enrichment site at Natanz. Tehran described the strike as a strength signal. Israel’s military said Iranian launches have become less frequent since the war began.

Israeli leaders visited one of two southern communities near a secretive nuclear research site hit late Saturday. Scores of people were wounded in the area, and Israel detected more missiles fired there on Sunday evening. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was a miracle no one was killed. Netanyahu said Israel and the US were close to war aims.

The stated aims have varied during the conflict. They included damaging Iran’s nuclear programme and missile programme. They also included weakening support for armed proxies. Another aim mentioned was enabling the Iranian people to overthrow the theocracy. Qalibaf said: \"If the Israeli regime is unable to intercept missiles in the heavily protected Dimona area, it is, operationally, a sign of entering a new phase of the battle,\"

Southern Israel’s main hospital treated at least 175 wounded from Arad and Dimona. Deputy director Roy Kessous gave the figure to The Associated Press. Israel is believed to have nuclear weapons but does not confirm it. The UN nuclear watchdog said on X it saw no damage reports or unusual radiation levels.

Israel denied responsibility for striking Natanz on Saturday. Iran’s judiciary news agency Mizan reported there was no leakage. The Pentagon declined to comment on the strike. The International Atomic Energy Agency said most of Iran’s estimated 972 pounds, or 441 kilograms, of enriched uranium is elsewhere at Isfahan under rubble.

Hezbollah Israel Lebanon bridges and civilian deaths

Hezbollah said it carried out an airstrike that killed a man in northern Israel. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Israel’s targeting of southern bridges looked like preparation for a ground invasion. Israel expanded targets to bridges over the Litani River. Defence Minister Israel Katz said Hezbollah uses them to move fighters and weapons.

Israel later hit the Qasmiyeh bridge near Tyre after giving an hour’s warning. Destroyed bridges further cut residents off from other areas of Lebanon. Katz also told the military to speed up destruction of Lebanese homes near the border. Lebanese authorities said Israeli strikes killed more than 1,000 and displaced over 1 million.

In northern Israel, a civilian died in a car in Misgav Am. Israel’s military first said it looked like a rocket attack. Later, it said it was checking if Israeli soldiers’ fire caused the death. Authorities named the victim as 61-year-old farmer Ofer Poshko Moskovitz. Two days earlier, Moskovitz said border life felt like Russian roulette.

Hezbollah began strikes soon after the war started. Hezbollah called them retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Israel then hit Hezbollah in deadly airstrikes. Israel also expanded its ground presence in southern Lebanon. Meanwhile, Hezbollah has fired hundreds of rockets into Israel.

Iran hospital strike deaths and wider toll

Iran said strikes also hit a hospital in Andimeshk. Iran’s health ministry said patients and doctors were moved to another city. State media on Saturday said Iran’s death toll passed 1,500. In Israel, 15 people have died from Iranian strikes. More than a dozen civilians were also killed in the occupied West Bank and Gulf Arab states.

A separate incident added to the region’s strain on Saturday. Qatari authorities said a Qatari military helicopter crashed due to a technical malfunction. All seven people onboard were killed. The crash was not linked to strikes in the report. It came as many countries watched risks around airspace and critical infrastructure.

The latest exchanges left the Strait of Hormuz and major facilities at the centre of the conflict. Iran kept warning about wider retaliation if its power system is attacked. Israel continued reporting missiles near sensitive southern areas. With deaths rising across several places, the war’s impact on civilians and energy security remained severe.

With inputs from PTI