Trump threatens to destroy Iran in one night: strikes on bridges, power plants, and a major pilot rescue operation

US President Donald Trump declared at a White House press conference on Monday that Iran could be "destroyed" in a single night — and that night "could" come on Tuesday evening.
Joining Trump at the press briefing on the war with Iran were Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine, and CIA Director John Ratcliffe.
Hegseth signalled that the situation would continue to escalate, stating that the scale of military operations was intensifying. "Today will be the largest strike since day one. And tomorrow will be even bigger than today," he said.
According to Trump, Iran is an "active and interested party" in negotiations aimed at a possible end to the war. "I can't talk about a ceasefire, but I can tell you that we have an active and interested party on the other side. They would like to make a deal. I can't say more than that," Trump said. He also told reporters that talks with intermediaries were "going well."
The US president issued Iran an ultimatum, threatening strikes on bridges and power plants if Iran's leadership fails to meet American demands. He stated that he was "not at all" concerned about war crimes accusations in this regard.
"We need a deal that works for me, and one of the conditions will be ensuring the free flow of oil and everything else," Trump said at the press conference.
Trump stated that the US has a plan under which all bridges and power plants in Iran could be destroyed by midnight Tuesday. "I mean total destruction by 12 o'clock. And it could happen within four hours if we wanted to. But we don't want that to happen," Trump said.
He also claimed that Iranians are willing to suffer for their freedom, saying the US had intercepted messages urging "keep bombing." "They are willing to endure this for freedom," Trump declared at the press conference.
According to Trump, the United States attempted to arm Iranian protesters, but the weapons were diverted and never reached the intended recipients. "We sent weapons, a lot of weapons, they were supposed to get to the people so they could fight back against these thugs." "You know what happened? The people we sent them to kept them for themselves," Trump continued, adding: "So I'm very angry at a certain group of people, and they will pay a big price for this."
Trump did not provide details about who he was accusing of stealing the American weapons. However, on Sunday, according to a Fox News reporter, Trump said he blamed Kurdish intermediaries for diverting weapons intended for Iranian dissidents.
Major pilot rescue operation
Trump also described in detail the rescue of an American pilot shot down by Iranian forces, outlining a large-scale operation involving significant military resources. According to the president, the officer was "bleeding heavily" but managed to climb through mountainous terrain and make contact with US forces.
The operation involved a total of 155 aircraft, including four bombers, 64 fighter jets, 48 tanker aircraft, and 13 rescue planes. Trump said the operation also involved efforts to mislead Iranian forces about the location of the search.
The president also threatened legal action against media outlets that reported details of the incident, warning of potential imprisonment if the source was not revealed. "We will find out. This is a matter of national security. And whoever wrote that article will go to jail if they don't say," Trump declared, calling the source of the leak a "sick person."

Trump threatens to destroy Iran in one night: strikes on bridges, power plants, and a major pilot rescue operation