US vows to target more Iranian infrastructure as nations seek to open Hormuz

(Reuters)

WASHINGTON/CAIRO, , April 3 – President Donald Trump said the U.S. “hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran”, reiterating vows to increase the ferocity of attacks ​on its infrastructure, as dozens of countries sought ways to restart vital energy shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.

Nearly five weeks after it started with a joint ‌U.S.-Israeli aerial assault, the war in Iran continues to spread chaos across the region and roil financial markets, raising the pressure on Trump to find a quick resolution to the conflict.

Trump has stepped up his rhetoric in recent days as negotiations conducted via intermediaries with new leaders in Iran show limited signs of progress.

The U.S. military “hasn’t even started destroying what’s left in Iran. Bridges next, then Electric Power Plants,” Trump wrote on social media late on Thursday, adding that ​Iran’s leadership “knows what has to be done, and has to be done, FAST!”

He earlier posted video of the U.S. bombing a newly constructed bridge between Tehran and the major northwest ​suburb of Karaj. The B1 bridge was scheduled to open to traffic this year. According to Iran’s state media, eight people were killed and 95 ⁠others were wounded in the U.S. attack.

“Striking civilian structures, including unfinished bridges, will not compel Iranians to surrender,” Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in a statement.

Satellite images also showed smoke rising from ​the port in Qeshm, an Iranian island strategically located in the Strait of Hormuz, earlier this week.