Iran rejects latest ceasefire proposal as Trump's deadline approaches

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran connected Monday rejected a 45-day ceasefire connection and said it wants a imperishable extremity to the war, adjacent arsenic Israel attacked a large state tract and U.S. President Donald Trump’s ultimatum to unfastened the Strait of Hormuz loomed.

“We lone judge an extremity of the warfare with guarantees that we won’t beryllium attacked again," Mojtaba Ferdousi Pour, caput of Iran’s diplomatic ngo successful Cairo, told The Associated Press. He said Iran nary longer trusts the Trump medication aft the U.S. bombed the Islamic Republic doubly during erstwhile rounds of talks.

Iran’s state-run IRNA quality bureau said Tehran conveyed its effect done Pakistan, a cardinal mediator.

And yet a determination authoritative progressive successful talks said efforts had not collapsed. “We are inactive talking to some sides,” helium said, speaking connected information of anonymity to sermon closed-door diplomacy.

Ferdousi Pour said Iranian and Omani officials were moving connected a mechanics for administrating the strait, done which a 5th of the world’s lipid is shipped successful peacetime. Iran’s grip connected it has shaken the satellite economy. Tehran has refused to fto U.S. and Israeli vessels done aft they started the warfare connected Feb. 28.

Israel strikes monolithic state field, and Trump sets deadline

Iran's rejection came aft Israel struck a cardinal petrochemical works successful the South Pars earthy state tract and killed 2 paramilitary Revolutionary Guard commanders.

The state tract onslaught aimed astatine eliminating a large root of gross for Iran, Israel said. The field, the world’s largest, is shared with Qatar. It is captious to energy production, but the onslaught appeared to beryllium abstracted from Trump’s threats.

An earlier Israeli onslaught connected the tract successful March prompted Iran to people vigor infrastructure successful different Middle East countries, a large escalation.

Trump has warned Iran that the U.S. could acceptable the state “back to the chromatic ages."

Word of Iran's rejection of the ceasefire connection came portion Trump addressed an Easter lawsuit connected the White House lawn, and it was not wide whether helium was aware. But helium besides was scheduled to clasp a quality league aboriginal Monday.

“If they don’t outcry uncle, nary bridges, nary powerfulness plants, nary anything,” Trump said of Iran. “But they will."

He besides threatened to spell further. "If I had my choice, what would I similar to do? Take the oil,” helium said, suggesting it could beryllium done easily, but “unfortunately the American radical would similar to spot america travel home.”

Asked if Tuesday astatine 8 p.m. Washington clip was his last deadline for Iran, Trump replied simply, “Yeah."

Proposal had called for a 45-day ceasefire

Egyptian, Pakistani and Turkish mediators had sent Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff a connection calling for a 45-day ceasefire and the strait's reopening, 2 Mideast officials told the AP. The officials spoke connected information of anonymity to sermon the backstage negotiations.

Iran’s overseas ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei earlier told journalists that “negotiations are wholly incompatible with ultimatums, crimes and threats of warfare crimes.”

Former Iranian overseas curate Ali Akbar Velayatir urged Arab countries to discourage Trump from striking powerfulness plants, informing the full portion would spell “dark” if that happens.

Brent crude oil, the planetary standard, roseate to $109 successful aboriginal Monday spot trading, astir 50% higher than erstwhile the warfare started, past wavered. U.S. stocks mostly held steady.

Israel threatens to ‘hunt’ Iranian officials

Explosions boomed successful Tehran, and low-flying jets could beryllium heard for hours.

The caput of quality for Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, Maj. Gen. Majid Khademi, was killed, according to Iranian authorities media and Israel’s defence minister. Israel said it besides killed the person of the Revolutionary Guard’s undercover portion successful its expeditionary Quds Force, Asghar Bakeri.

“We volition proceed to hunt them down 1 by one," Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said of apical officials.

Israel’s subject aboriginal said it struck 3 Tehran airports overnight — Bahram, Mehrabad and Azmayesh — hitting dozens of helicopters and craft it said belonged to the Iranian Air Force.

A Tehran nonmigratory said “constantly determination is the dependable of bombs, aerial defenses, drones," speaking connected information of anonymity for her safety. Another nonmigratory said helium takes sleeping pills to get done nightly bombardments, and said radical interest astir power, state and h2o cuts. “Stop this war,” helium said.

Separately, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia activated aerial defenses to intercept Iranian missiles and drones. Tehran has kept up unit connected Gulf neighbors, including strikes against infrastructure similar lipid fields.

In Israel, Iranian missiles deed the bluish metropolis of Haifa, wherever 4 radical from 1 household were recovered dormant successful the rubble of a residential building.

Airstrikes termination much than 25 crossed Iran

Smoke roseate adjacent Tehran’s Azadi Square aft an airstrike deed the grounds of the Sharif University of Technology. Multiple countries person sanctioned the assemblage for its enactment with the military, peculiarly connected Iran’s ballistic rocket program.

Iranian media reported harm to buildings and a adjacent earthy state organisation site. The assemblage is bare arsenic the warfare forced schools into online classes.

A onslaught adjacent Eslamshar, southwest of Tehran, killed astatine slightest 15 people, authorities said. Five were killed successful a residential country successful Qom, and six were killed successful strikes connected different cities, the state-run IRAN regular paper reported. Three radical were killed astatine a location successful Tehran, authorities tv reported.

In Lebanon, wherever Israel has launched aerial attacks and a crushed penetration that it says people the Iran-linked Hezbollah militia, an airstrike deed an flat successful Ain Saadeh, a predominately Christian municipality eastbound of Beirut. It killed an authoritative successful the Lebanese Forces, a Christian governmental enactment powerfully opposed to Hezbollah, his woman and different woman.

“We had ever felt harmless here,” household person Nadine Naameh said.

More than 1,900 radical person been killed successful Iran since the warfare began, but the authorities has not updated the toll for days.

More than 1,400 radical person been killed successful Lebanon and much than 1 cardinal radical person been displaced. Eleven Israeli soldiers person died there.

In Gulf Arab states and the occupied West Bank, much than 2 twelve radical person died, portion 23 person been reported dormant successful Israel and 13 U.S. work members person been killed.

___

Weissert reported from Washington and Magdy from Cairo. Munir Ahmed successful Islamabad, Isabel DeBre successful Ain Saadeh, Lebanon, Amir-Hussein Radjy successful Cairo and Michelle L. Price successful Washington contributed to this story.

Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.