SATV, Kathmandu, Mar. 23 - Iran responded Sunday with threats of its own, a day after President Donald Trump warned the United States will "obliterate" Iran's power plants if Tehran fails to fully open the Strait of Hormuz in 48 hours and Iranian missiles struck two cities near Israel's main nuclear research center, injuring dozens and shattering apartment buildings.
The developments signaled the war in the Middle East, now in its fourth week, was moving in a dangerous new direction.
Sirens blared across Israel as Iran launched new barrages Sunday. In the country's south, residents faced the devastation in the cities of Dimona and Arad. In northern Israel, a man was killed in a strike by the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu toured Arad and said it was a "miracle" that no one was killed by the blast, which heavily damaged several buildings. But he said that if all residents had rushed to shelters, no one would have been hurt and urged all to heed the sirens.
Trump said on Saturday that he would give Iran 48 hours to open the vital Strait of Hormuz or face a new round of attacks. He said the U.S. would destroy "various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!"
He may have meant the Bushehr nuclear power plant, Iran's biggest, which was already hit last week, or Damavand, a natural gas plant near Tehran, Iran's capital.
In turn, Iran warned early Sunday that any strike on its energy facilities would prompt attacks on U.S. and Israeli energy and infrastructure assets — specifically information technology and desalination facilities — in the region, according to a statement citing an Iranian military spokesperson carried by state media and semiofficial outlets.
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean and is a critical pathway for the world's flow of oil. Attacks on commercial ships and threats of further strikes have stopped nearly all tankers from carrying oil, gas and other goods through the passage, leading to cuts in output from some of the world's largest oil producers, because their crude has nowhere to go.
Seyed Ali Mousavi, Iran's envoy to the International Maritime Organization, said in remarks carried by two Iranian news agencies that navigating the strait is possible for "everyone except enemies" — indicating Tehran would determine which vessels are allowed passage. Iran has already approved the passage of ships through the waterway to China and elsewhere in Asia.
Israel's military said it was not able to intercept missiles that hit Dimona and Arad on Saturday, the largest cities near the Negev Desert nuclear center. It was the first time Iranian missiles penetrated Israel's air defense systems in the area.
"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," Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X.
Rescue workers said at least 64 people were taken to hospitals after the direct hit in Arad. Dimona is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of the nuclear research center and Arad around 35 kilometers (22 miles) north.
Israel's hard-line national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, visited Arad on Sunday, saying that Israel is in a "historic battle" against Iran and that it must "continue until victory."
Israel is believed to possess nuclear weapons, though it doesn't confirm or deny this. The U.N. nuclear watchdog said on X it had not received reports of damage to the Israeli center or any abnormal radiation levels.
Tehran's main nuclear enrichment site at Natanz was hit earlier on Saturday. Israel denied responsibility for the attack and the Iranian judiciary's official news agency, Mizan, said there was no leakage.(AP)
