Trump says we're 'blowing up the whole country' if Iran doesn't make deal in 48 hours

Two C-130 aircraft were lost during the operation, an official said.

Last Updated: April 6, 2026, 1:24 AM EDT

President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes attack targeting military and government sites, officials said.

Watch special coverage onĀ Nightline, "War with Iran," each night on ABC and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.

Mar 30, 2026, 7:40 AM EDT

Trump threatens broad strikes on Iran infrastructure if talks fail

President Donald Trump said in a post to social media on Monday morning that the U.S. is currently engaged in "serious discussions with A NEW, AND MORE REASONABLE, REGIME to end our Military Operations in Iran," but threatened to expand U.S. strikes if the negotiations fail.

"Great progress has been made but, if for any reason a deal is not shortly reached, which it probably will be, and if the Hormuz Strait is not immediately 'Open for Business,' we will conclude our lovely 'stay' in Iran by blowing up and completely obliterating all of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!), which we have purposefully not yet 'touched,'" Trump wrote.

"This will be in retribution for our many soldiers, and others, that Iran has butchered and killed over the old Regime's 47 year 'Reign of Terror,'" Trump added.

Mar 30, 2026, 6:46 AM EDT

Chinese cargo ships cross Strait of Hormuz, MarineTraffic says

Two Chinese container ships that turned back from trying to cross the Strait of Hormuz on Friday successfully transited the strategic chokepoint on Monday, according to MarineTraffic data published on X.

The ultra-large container vessels are owned by China's state-owned COSCO Shipping company.

MarineTraffic said it was the "first confirmed crossing by a major container carrier since the start of the conflict" which could signal "a potential shift in conditions for commercial shipping."

The two ships that crossed the Strait on Monday were the CSCL Indian Ocean and CSCL Arctic Ocean, MarinteTraffix said.

Fishing boats dot the sea as cargo ships sail through the Persian Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz off the United Arab Emirates, on March 27, 2026.
AP

-ABC News' Charlotte Gardiner

Mar 30, 2026, 5:48 AM EDT

IDF reports strikes on northern Israel

The Israel Defense forces said on Monday that rescue and emergency services were responding to the scenes of reported strikes in northern Israel.

The IDF statement came after reports of missile fire from Iran and from the Hezbollah militia in Lebanon.

Photos and videos from the northern Israeli city of Haifa showed emergency services responding to a fire at an oil refinery.

A fire burns after Israel's Fire and Rescue Service said that an industrial building and a fuel tanker at Israel's Oil Refineries were hit by debris from an intercepted Iranian missile in Haifa, Israel, on March 30, 2026.
Rami Shlush/Reuters

There were no immediate reports of injuries related to Monday morning's attacks.

Mar 30, 2026, 4:36 AM EDT

IDF says it targeted 40 weapons sites in Tehran over past 2 days

The Israel Defense Forces said on Monday that it struck around 40 sites across Tehran over the previous two days, which it alleged were involved in weapons research and production.

The IDF claimed that among the sites targeted were facilities used for the assembly of anti-aircraft missiles, anti-tank missiles and ballistic missiles.

A plume of smoke rises from the site of a strike in Tehran on March 29, 2026.
Atta Kenare/AFP via Getty Images

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