President Donald Trump’s efforts to bring about a temporary pause to the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran were harshly rebuked Monday by a top Iranian official, and in spite of the president’s recent claim that Iran has “asked the United States for a ceasefire.”
Al Jazeera reported Monday that Iran had outright rejected the Trump administration’s 15-point ceasefire plan, with Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei calling the plan “illogical.” He also vowed that Iran would continue to defend itself against U.S.-Israeli attacks with “all its might.”
Trump has faced widespread ridicule for his failed attempts to bring about either a pause or an end to the conflict he initiated in late February, particularly for having extended deadlines several times for Iran to re-open the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping channel through which 20% of the world’s oil trade flows.
The president’s latest deadline is set to expire on Tuesday, with Trump having threatened to destroy Iranian civilian infrastructure on a mass scale should Tehran refuse access for U.S.-aligned vessels to the Strait of Hormuz.