News blog about the war in the Middle East
“God be praised”: Trump threatens Iran with “hell” in 48 hours
Updated April 4, 2026 – 6:45 p.mReading time: 41 minutes
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Another US fighter jet crashes. A possible US war crime can be seen on a video. All developments in the news blog.
Iran is exempting Iraq from any restrictions on passage through the Strait of Hormuz, according to local media reports. The media cites the joint Iranian military command Chatam al-Anbija. There is currently no statement from the government in Baghdad.
Donald Trump has threatened Iran again – and his threat has been religiously charged. The US President writes on Truth Social: “Remember that I gave Iran ten days to make a deal or open the Strait of Hormuz. Time is running out – 48 hours before hell breaks upon them. Praise God!”
Trump had threatened that if Iran did not open the strait completely to shipping traffic “without threats,” he would have Iranian power plants destroyed. He postponed his ultimatum again last week. The US President announced that there would be no attacks on Iranian power plants until April 6th (US local time; the night of April 7th German time), citing “very good” talks. In recent days, however, there have continued to be violent attacks from both sides. Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which is important for global oil and gas trade, remains largely at a standstill.
The niece and grandniece of the slain Iranian military commander Ghassem Soleimani are arrested in the USA. The State Department in Washington announced that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio had previously revoked their permanent residence permit. Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter are now in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the statement continued. The former commander of the Al-Quds Brigade was killed in a drone operation in Baghdad in January 2020 on the orders of US President Donald Trump.
The International Energy Agency (IAEA) announced on Platform X that it had been informed by Iran about the attack on the Bushehr nuclear power plant. According to the Iranian state news agency Irna, a bullet struck near the power plant’s border fence. As a result of the explosion and flying fragments, a security guard was killed and an adjacent building was damaged. There was no damage to the main areas of the power plant and operations were not affected. The IAEA expressed its “deep concern” about the incident: “Nuclear power plants or adjacent areas must never be attacked.”
