WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - President Donald Trump has issued a fresh ultimatum to Iran, warning that if it doesn't accept his 14-point peace proposal to end the Middle East war, the United States will start bombing 'at a much higher level and intensity.'
'Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran. If they don't agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before,' he said in a statement posted on Truth Social Wednesday.
Shortly after, U.S. Central Command forces fired on an Iranian-flagged oil tanker.
CENTCOM said in a press release that U.S. forces operating in the Gulf of Oman enforced blockade measures by disabling an Iranian-flagged empty oil tanker attempting to sail toward an Iranian port Wednesday morning.
After M/T Hasna's crew failed to comply with repeated warnings, U.S. forces disabled the tanker's rudder by firing several rounds from the 20mm cannon gun of a U.S. Navy F/A-18 Super Hornet launched from USS Abraham Lincoln. Hasna is no longer transiting to Iran, according to CENTCOM.
Meanwhile, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Tehran is reviewing the Trump administration's 14-point memorandum of understanding, outlining a framework for broader nuclear talks with Iran.
He told the ISNA news agency that the foreign ministry will 'inform the Pakistani side of its opinion.'
Key provisions include Iran suspending its nuclear enrichment program, U.S. lifting of sanctions on Tehran, and clearing the Strait of Hormuz for free shipping.
Ebrahim Rezaei, the spokesperson of the Iranian Parliament's national security and foreign policy commission, wrote on X: 'The Americans will not gain anything in a war they are losing that they have not gained in face-to-face negotiations.'
He warned that if Washington does not 'surrender and grant the necessary concessions,' Iran 'has its finger on the trigger and is ready' to 'deliver a harsh and regret-inducing response'.
After a sharp fall in the previous session, there was not much change in oil prices Thursday.
Brent crude remained below $100 a barrel while the US-traded WTI traded around $93.
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