By Maayan Lubell, Alexander Cornwell and Idrees Ali
TEL AVIV/JERUSALEM/WASHINGTON, March 22 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to "obliterate" Iran's power plants if Tehran does not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, a dramatic escalation that came barely a day after he talked about "winding down" the war.
"If Iran doesn't FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit
and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!" Trump said on social media.
The threat landed as the conflict entered dangerous new territory.
Israeli officials said that Iranian forces had for the first time fired long-range missiles, expanding the risk of attacks beyond the Middle East, even as an Iranian strike injured dozens of people not far from Israel's nuclear site.
Iran launched two 4,000-kilometer-range ballistic missiles at the U.S.-UK military base Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir said. The Israeli military said it was the "first time" Iran had used long-range missiles since the United States and Israel began attacking Iran on February 28.
"These missiles are not intended to strike Israel. Their range reaches European capitals - Berlin, Paris, and Rome are all within direct threat range," Zamir said in a statement.
A source at Britain's defence ministry said the attack had occurred before the government gave specific authorisation on Friday for the U.S. to use British military bases to carry out strikes on Iranian missile sites.
More than 2,000 people have been killed in Iran since the U.S. and Israel began their attacks. In Israel, 15 people have been killed in Iranian strikes since the war started.
Late on Saturday, Iranian missiles hit the southern Israeli cities of Dimona and Arad, injuring dozens of people, including children, in separate strikes. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said in a statement early Sunday that they targeted "military installations" and security centers in southern Israel.
Israeli army spokesperson Brigadier General Effie Defrin said in a post on X that the country's air defenses were functioning but did not intercept the strikes. "We will investigate the incident and learn from it," he said.
Israel’s secretive nuclear reactor is about 13 kilometers southeast of Dimona. Both cities lie near several military sites, including Nevatim Air Base, one of the country's largest.
"This has been a very difficult evening in the battle for our future," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement released by his office following the strike on Arad.
"We are determined to continue striking our enemies on all fronts," the statement said.
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali in Washington, Andrew Mills in Doha, Timour Azhari in Riyadh, Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem and Alexander Cornwell in Tel Aviv; Additional reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Nia Williams)
