DUBAI — Iran said Monday it wants a lasting end to the war with the U.S. and Israel, and pushed back against pressure to reopen the Strait of Hormuz while U.S. President Donald Trump warned the country could be "taken out" if it did not meet his Tuesday night deadline to reach a deal.
Responding to a U.S. proposal through mediator Pakistan, Tehran rejected a ceasefire and said a permanent end to the war was necessary, the official IRNA news agency reported.
The Iranian response consisted of 10 clauses, including an end to conflicts in the region, a protocol for safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, lifting of sanctions and reconstruction, the agency added.
Trump
Trump, who threatened to rain "hell" on Tehran if it did not make a deal by 8 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday to open the Strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global energy supplies, rejected the Iranian response and said his deadline was final.
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"They made a proposal, and it's a significant proposal. It's a significant step. It's not good enough," Trump told reporters at an annual White House Easter event, referring to Iran.
U.S. President Donald Trump takes questions Monday as he speaks during a news conference at the White House in Washington.
At a later news conference, Trump said Iran could be "taken out" in one night "and that night might be tomorrow night," referring to Tuesday.
After the U.S. and Israel attacked Feb. 28, Iran effectively closed Hormuz, a conduit for about a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas supply. The waterway’s stranglehold on the global economy has proved a powerful Iranian bargaining chip, and Tehran showed reluctance Monday to relinquish it too easily.
A Pakistani-brokered framework for ending the war proposed an immediate ceasefire, followed by talks on a broader peace settlement to be concluded within 15 to 20 days, a source aware of the proposals said.
Pakistan's army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, was in contact "all night long" with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, the source said.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran's demands "should not be interpreted as a sign of compromise, but rather as a reflection of its confidence in defending its positions." He added that earlier U.S. demands, such as a 15-point plan, were rejected as "excessive."
A man wearing a high-visibility vest carries a child's bicycle at an impact site after a barrage of missiles launched from Iran in central Israel.
Rescue mission
At the Monday news conference, Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth praised the successful weekend retrieval from Iran of a U.S. airman whose jet was shot down on Friday.
Hegseth described the rescue in explicitly Christian terms, comparing it to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
"Shot down on a Friday, Good Friday, hidden in a cave, a crevice, all of Saturday and rescued on Sunday, flown out of Iran as the sun was rising on Easter Sunday, a pilot reborn. All home and accounted for a nation rejoicing. God is good," Hegseth said.
The rescue mission came amid rising concern about the nearly six-week-long war's effect on the global economy, including a sharp rise in fuel prices. The conflict has also hit Trump's approval ratings and intensified anxiety among Republicans about November's midterm elections.
Emergency personnel work Monday at the site of a projectile impact in Haifa, Israel.
Infrastructure
Fresh aerial strikes were reported across the region on Monday. Hegseth said at the news conference in Washington that Monday would have the largest volume of strikes since the start of the war, and Tuesday would see even more.
Iranian state media said the Revolutionary Guards' intelligence chief, Majid Khademi, died. Israel claimed responsibility for his death.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz threatened to destroy Iran’s infrastructure and hunt down its leaders "one by one." The Israeli military also said it had targeted Iran's air force through a series of strikes on the Bahram, Mehrabad, and Azmayesh airports.
Netanyahu
Iran said two of its petrochemical complexes were attacked.
Emergency and firefighting teams brought a blaze under control at the South Pars complex in Asaluyeh, Iran's National Petrochemical Company said. No casualties were reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strike on the petrochemical facility in southern Iran was part of dismantling Iran's Revolutionary Guards "money machine".
"Iran is no longer the same Iran, and Israel is no longer the same Israel. Israel is stronger than ever, and the terrorist regime in Iran is weaker than ever," Netanyahu said in a statement.
Trump threatened further strikes on Iranian energy and transport infrastructure if Tehran failed to reopen the Strait by Tuesday. Some experts say strikes on civilian infrastructure such as power plants and bridges would constitute war crimes.
Emergency personnel work Monday at the site of a projectile impact in Haifa, Israel.
Fighting back
Iranian weekend strikes on petrochemical facilities and an Israeli-linked vessel in Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE underscored the country's ability to fight back despite Trump's repeated claims to have knocked out its missile and drone capabilities.
Israel saw a heavy day of rocket volleys on Monday, with the sounds of sirens and missile interception booms ringing out across the country throughout the day.
About 3,540 people have been killed in Iran in the war, U.S.-based rights group HRANA said.
Israel has also invaded southern Lebanon and struck Beirut in a fight against Iran-backed Hezbollah militants that has become the war's most violent spillover. Lebanese authorities say 1,461 people have been killed.
Thirteen U.S. service members have died.
