April 19, 2026
“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!” the president wrote on his Truth Social platform, while announcing talks would continue in Pakistan on Monday.
“They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the DEAL, it will be my Honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents, for the last 47 years. IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!” Trump added.
Trump also said in his post that Iranian forces opened fire at British and French vessels near the Strait of Hormuz.
“That wasn’t nice, was it? My Representatives are going to Islamabad, Pakistan — They will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations. Iran recently announced that they were closing the Strait, which is strange, because our BLOCKADE has already closed it.”
“They’re helping us without knowing, and they are the ones that lose with the closed passage, $500 Million Dollars a day! The United States loses nothing. In fact, many Ships are headed, right now, to the U.S., Texas, Louisiana, and Alaska, to load up, compliments of the IRGC, always wanting to be ‘the tough guy!’”
After having reopened it following the Lebanon truce, Iran reclosed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, citing Trump’s vow to continue blockading Iranian ports despite a ceasefire.
Tehran also opened fire at two Indian-flagged vessels attempting to cross, which New Delhi labeled a “serious incident.”
In a statement, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said: "No vessel should make any movement from its anchorage in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, and approaching the Strait of Hormuz will be considered as cooperation with the enemy."
Earlier, Iran’s military said, "control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state ... under strict management and control of the armed forces."
Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmail Baghaei said on Sunday that the US naval blockade violates the ceasefire and international law, breaching Article 2(4) of the UN Charter and constituting an act of aggression under UN Resolution 3314.
“It constitutes an act of aggression … and amounts to war crime and crime against humanity.”
Trump’s threat came as a New York Post correspondent said US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to travel to Islamabad on Tuesday for a second round of Iran-related talks.
Mehr News Agency reported on Saturday that Iran had not agreed to a new round of talks with the US, citing Washington’s naval blockade and what it described as excessive demands.
Also on Saturday, Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said progress has been made but “fundamental differences” remain and Tehran is still far from a deal, warning the US and Israel could resume the war when the ceasefire expires.
According to Al Jazeera, at least two major hotels, including the Serena Hotel in Islamabad, which hosted previous negotiations, have reportedly asked guests to vacate amid heightened security measures.
Local authorities have also moved to restrict heavy transport and public buses across the capital.
Tehran has not confirmed participation. Semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported: “The Iranian negotiating team has underscored that as long as US President Donald Trump’s declaration regarding a naval blockade of Iran remains in place, there will be no negotiations.”
In a nationally televised address on Saturday night, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said, "If I want to summarize, we have made progress, but our differences are still great. Some fundamental differences remain … We are still far from the final discussion."
"America must gain the trust of the Iranian nation. This is the most important step the Americans can take," Ghalibaf added. "They must abandon their approach in their dialogue from unilateralism and the mentality that they want to impose something on us."
In the past, the US and Israel have assassinated leaders and negotiators from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran amid ongoing peace talks.
On Sunday, Iran's President, Masoud Pezeshkian, said that US President Donald Trump cannot justify depriving the Islamic Republic of its right to nuclear energy.
"We're going to get it together. We're going to go in with Iran, at a nice leisurely pace, and go down and start excavating with big machinery ... We'll bring it back to the United States," Trump said during a phone interview with Reuters.
The IRGC reimposed the restrictions after Trump insisted that the US would maintain a blockade on Iranian ports despite Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi's announcement on X that Hormuz was "completely open."
Regarding a possible new round of talks, Iran's deputy foreign minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, stated on Saturday that no date could be set before the two sides agree on a "framework of understanding," and that Washington was preventing new negotiations by insisting on a "maximalist" stance.
"The other sides also should understand and address our main concerns, which are illegal unilateral sanctions that Americans have imposed on Iranians and this economic terrorism which has targeted Iranian people to suffocate them and make them revolt against the political structure inside Iran," Khatibzadeh said.
Earlier on Saturday, Trump said the US would "have to start dropping bombs again" if no deal was reached by Wednesday, the day the current ceasefire expires.
Abbas Aslani, a senior fellow at the Center for Middle East Strategic Studies in Tehran, told Al Jazeera he does not believe the US is seeking a diplomatic agreement to end the war.
"The first track was negotiations, but Iran has been saying that if the US is genuinely seeking an agreement, why are they engaging in a naval blockade, why are they adding sanctions, and why are they intensifying their military presence in the region?" he asked.
"There are no signs of extension of these agreements, and nobody's talking about extending this ceasefire," he told Al Jazeera.
Iran has reclosed the Strait of
Hormuz due to Washington’s ongoing blockade on the country’s ports
US President Donald Trump renewed
on 19 April his threats to attack Iranian power stations and bridges if the
Islamic Republic does not agree to Washington’s terms for an agreement.
“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!” the president wrote on his Truth Social platform, while announcing talks would continue in Pakistan on Monday.
“They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the DEAL, it will be my Honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents, for the last 47 years. IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!” Trump added.
Trump also said in his post that Iranian forces opened fire at British and French vessels near the Strait of Hormuz.
“That wasn’t nice, was it? My Representatives are going to Islamabad, Pakistan — They will be there tomorrow evening, for Negotiations. Iran recently announced that they were closing the Strait, which is strange, because our BLOCKADE has already closed it.”
“They’re helping us without knowing, and they are the ones that lose with the closed passage, $500 Million Dollars a day! The United States loses nothing. In fact, many Ships are headed, right now, to the U.S., Texas, Louisiana, and Alaska, to load up, compliments of the IRGC, always wanting to be ‘the tough guy!’”
After having reopened it following the Lebanon truce, Iran reclosed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, citing Trump’s vow to continue blockading Iranian ports despite a ceasefire.
Tehran also opened fire at two Indian-flagged vessels attempting to cross, which New Delhi labeled a “serious incident.”
In a statement, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said: "No vessel should make any movement from its anchorage in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, and approaching the Strait of Hormuz will be considered as cooperation with the enemy."
Earlier, Iran’s military said, "control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state ... under strict management and control of the armed forces."
Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmail Baghaei said on Sunday that the US naval blockade violates the ceasefire and international law, breaching Article 2(4) of the UN Charter and constituting an act of aggression under UN Resolution 3314.
“It constitutes an act of aggression … and amounts to war crime and crime against humanity.”
Trump’s threat came as a New York Post correspondent said US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected to travel to Islamabad on Tuesday for a second round of Iran-related talks.
Mehr News Agency reported on Saturday that Iran had not agreed to a new round of talks with the US, citing Washington’s naval blockade and what it described as excessive demands.
Also on Saturday, Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said progress has been made but “fundamental differences” remain and Tehran is still far from a deal, warning the US and Israel could resume the war when the ceasefire expires.
According to Al Jazeera, at least two major hotels, including the Serena Hotel in Islamabad, which hosted previous negotiations, have reportedly asked guests to vacate amid heightened security measures.
Local authorities have also moved to restrict heavy transport and public buses across the capital.
Tehran has not confirmed participation. Semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported: “The Iranian negotiating team has underscored that as long as US President Donald Trump’s declaration regarding a naval blockade of Iran remains in place, there will be no negotiations.”
Iran says its enriched uranium is
'not going anywhere' after Trump claimed he would bring it to the US
Iran and the US have made
progress in negotiations but are still a long way from a deal, Iran's
parliament speaker and chief negotiator stated in a speech on 19 April, raising
concerns that Washington and Tel Aviv's war on the Islamic Republic may resume
when the current ceasefire expires on Wednesday.In a nationally televised address on Saturday night, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said, "If I want to summarize, we have made progress, but our differences are still great. Some fundamental differences remain … We are still far from the final discussion."
"America must gain the trust of the Iranian nation. This is the most important step the Americans can take," Ghalibaf added. "They must abandon their approach in their dialogue from unilateralism and the mentality that they want to impose something on us."
In the past, the US and Israel have assassinated leaders and negotiators from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran amid ongoing peace talks.
On Sunday, Iran's President, Masoud Pezeshkian, said that US President Donald Trump cannot justify depriving the Islamic Republic of its right to nuclear energy.
"We're going to get it together. We're going to go in with Iran, at a nice leisurely pace, and go down and start excavating with big machinery ... We'll bring it back to the United States," Trump said during a phone interview with Reuters.
The IRGC reimposed the restrictions after Trump insisted that the US would maintain a blockade on Iranian ports despite Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi's announcement on X that Hormuz was "completely open."
Regarding a possible new round of talks, Iran's deputy foreign minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, stated on Saturday that no date could be set before the two sides agree on a "framework of understanding," and that Washington was preventing new negotiations by insisting on a "maximalist" stance.
"The other sides also should understand and address our main concerns, which are illegal unilateral sanctions that Americans have imposed on Iranians and this economic terrorism which has targeted Iranian people to suffocate them and make them revolt against the political structure inside Iran," Khatibzadeh said.
Earlier on Saturday, Trump said the US would "have to start dropping bombs again" if no deal was reached by Wednesday, the day the current ceasefire expires.
Abbas Aslani, a senior fellow at the Center for Middle East Strategic Studies in Tehran, told Al Jazeera he does not believe the US is seeking a diplomatic agreement to end the war.
"The first track was negotiations, but Iran has been saying that if the US is genuinely seeking an agreement, why are they engaging in a naval blockade, why are they adding sanctions, and why are they intensifying their military presence in the region?" he asked.
"There are no signs of extension of these agreements, and nobody's talking about extending this ceasefire," he told Al Jazeera.
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