LIVE: Iran threatens US with ‘crushing’ attacks

Donald Trump claimed near-victory in the Iran war during a low-energy White House address to the nation last night that sent oil prices soaring and global stocks sliding.

The President spoke for just under 20 minutes and didn’t announce any major developments – including whether ground troops would need to be deployed in the Gulf or who would take over leadership of the pariah state.

Instead, he repeated that Operation Epic Fury would conclude ‘shortly’, noting that the US’s military objectives were ‘nearing completion’ before vowing to bomb Iran ‘back to the Stone Ages’ if it didn’t do a deal.

Watch all the lines from his presidential address here:

Oil prices have risen to $106 per barrel after the US President addressed in his first primetime speech since launching the war on Iran.

The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil was $99 before he spoke to the nation yesterday.

Trump blamed the spike on the ‘Iranian regime launching deranged terror attacks against commercial oil tankers and neighbouring countries that have nothing to do with the conflict.

He did briefly acknowledge concerns among US citizens about the war causing soaring fuel prices.

However, Trump insisted these rising prices would soon go down while also adding that countries that get most of their oil from the Gulf region should lead the way in opening the Strait of Hormuz, which is effectively blocked by Iran.

Britain, France and other U.S. allies have said they are willing to help to keep the strait open, but only after hostilities have ceased.

‘They can do it easily,’ Trump said. ‘We will be helpful, but they should take the lead in protecting the oil that they so desperately depend on.’

Trump was also frustrated that NATO allies had not offered to help open the strait, even threatening to withdraw from the 76-year-old alliance.

While he had told Reuters earlier in the day that he would discuss the US relationship with NATO in his speech, he did not mention the bloc.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Donald Trump’s remarks about how his wife ‘badly treats’ him are not ‘elegant’ or ‘up to standard’.

Speaking in Seoul, Macron responded directly to the President’s mocking comments aimed at him during a lunch hours before his national address on the Iran war.

Trump ridiculded Macron for being slapped by his wife Brigitte and for failing to send warships to the Middle East.

The US President was referencing the viral video from last May that appeared to show the French First Lady pushing Macron in the face as they prepared to get off a plane in Vietnam.

Trump’s comments came before a televised address to the American nation on Wednesday night, during which he promised the military was close to defeating Iran and pledged to bomb the Islamic Republic ‘back to the Stone Ages’..

‘Then I call up France, Macron – whose wife treats him extremely badly – he’s still recovering from the right to the jaw,’ the US President joked during an Easter lunch at The White House hours before, eliciting laughter from the audience.

US Central Command, otherwise known as CENTCOM, has released new video of military equipment being blown up in Iran.

In a statement Admiral Brad Cooper said: ‘Now in our 5th week of the campaign, it is my operational assessment that we are making undeniable progress.

‘We don’t see their navy sailing. We don’t see their aircraft flying, and their air and missile defense systems have largely been destroyed.’

Travel agent Lastminute.com said war in the Middle East has impacted some 17,000 bookings, while holidaymakers are shifting towards alternative destinations like the Canary Islands and Sardinia.

The website, which offers holiday packages to destinations including Dubai and Abu Dhabi, said it was having to ‘adapt quickly’ to travellers changing their preferences in light of the conflict.

The US-Israeli war with Iran, which escalated at the end of February, led to disruption and cancellations of some flights to Gulf states including the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

The airspace closures, coupled with consumer sentiment when it comes to travel taking a hit, affected approximately 17,000 bookings, Lastminute revealed.

It said the total volume of affected travel around the region is currently the equivalent of about a day and a half of its normal daily operations.

A senior Iranian official has told Pete Hegseth he is taking ‘soldiers to their graves’ as the Defense Secretary echoed Donald Trump’s threat Iran will be bombed ‘back to the Stone Ages’.

Revolutionary Guard Aerospace Force commander Majid Mousavi responded directly to Hegseth on X, telling him: ‘It is you who are taking your soldiers to their graves, not Iran, whom you seek to drag back to the Stone Age.

‘Hollywood delusions have so poisoned your minds that, with your paltry 250-year history, you threaten a civilization over 6,000 years old.’

It comes as Iran dismissed Trump’s latest remarks on the war.

Donald Trump has sparked anger in France after claiming Emmanuel Macron’s wife ‘treats him extremely badly’.

The President made fun of the French president and imitated a French accent as he attacked Macron and Nato allies for not joining the war against Iran.

In France, politicians including a Macron critic were outraged by Trump’s attack.

‘Honestly, it’s not up to par,’ said Yael Braun-Pivet, president of France’s lower house of parliament.

‘We are currently discussing the future of the world. Right now in Iran, this is having consequences for the lives of millions of people, people are dying on the battlefield, and we have a president who is laughing, who is mocking others,’ she told franceinfo.

Even Manuel Bompard, coordinator of the hard-left France Unbowed party, rushed to Macron’s defence.

‘You are aware of the extent of my disagreements with the president, but for Donald Trump to speak to him like that and to speak of his wife in such a manner – I find that absolutely unacceptable,’ Bompard told broadcaster BFMTV.

by Eliana Silver, Senior Foreign News Reporter

A Dubai-based billionaire has warned that airlines could begin going bankrupt within weeks as the Middle East conflict sends shockwaves through the aviation industry, with bookings falling and fuel costs surging.

Gediminas Ziemelis, the founder of Avia Solutions Group, has said that the current crisis feels like a repeat of the Covid pandemic, with grounded planes, collapsing demand and no clear timeline for recovery.

‘We need to be ready for any area, district, jurisdiction and geopolitical risk,’ said Ziemelis.

He added: ‘If it lasts more than one month, we may see potential first bankruptcies,’ of airlines around the world.

The warning comes as fuel costs surge, placing intense pressure on airlines already dealing with disrupted routes.

Ziemelis said fuel typically accounts for about 25 per cent of an airline’s operating costs. Since the conflict began, oil prices have jumped nearly 50 per cent to around $100 a barrel.

by Patrick Harrington, UK News Reporter

Donald Trump has said he believes King Charles would have backed him in the war against Iran.

The US president suggested the King would have been more forthcoming with military support if he was calling the shots than Sir Keir Starmer has been.

The British Prime Minister has been repeatedly lambasted by Trump for rejecting his demands to get the UK more involved in the ongoing war with Iran.

Most recently, Trump has called for the UK and other allies to assist in re-opening the Strait of Hormuz, which the Iranians have closed in order to disrupt the supply of oil and other vital products.

Speaking to The Telegraph, Trump said: ‘I think he [Charles] would have taken a very different stand [on the war in Iran], but he doesn’t do that. I mean, he’s a great gentleman.’

There have been concerns that the King’s upcoming visit to the United States would be tainted by the tensions between Trump and Starmer.

by Eliana Silver, Senior Foreign News Reporter

Desperate Iranian leaders have launched a nationwide recruitment drive, urging citizens to ‘defend the country’s soil’ as fears of a potential US ground invasion grow.

In recent days, mass text messages have been sent across the country inviting people to join a national mobilisation campaign.

The messages, shared on state television, call on Iranians to confront ‘the American-Zionist enemy’s threats against Iran’s shores, islands and borders’, though no further details have been provided.

The recruitment push has been reinforced by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has announced a campaign to enlist individuals for a variety of roles, including military service.

Volunteers as young as 12 have been invited to take part in patrols, man security checkpoints, tend to the wounded, cook or provide financial support, according to the Financial Times.

The commander-in-chief of Iran’s army said ‘not a single person should survive’ a ground invasion as the military tracks US and Israeli movements ‘moment by moment’.

Iran’s operational headquarters must monitor ‘enemy movements with utmost ​pessimism and accuracy’ and be ‌ready to counter any method of attack, Amir ​Hatami was quoted as ​saying by state media.

‘If the enemy attempts to carry out ground operations, not a single person should survive,’ he added.

Donald Trump has ​said the Iran conflict is ‘nearing completion’ ​and could end within weeks, but a parallel buildup of additional US troops ​in the Gulf has ​raised concerns that preparations may be underway ‌for ⁠potential ground operations.

South Korea’s economy is on a ‘wartime footing’ over the Iran war, President Lee Jae Myung has said after his government proposed a $17.2 billion supplementary budget to tackle the crisis.

Oil prices have surged amid the US-Israeli war on Iran, raising growth and inflation risks for South Korea, which is heavily reliant on Middle Eastern crude for around 70 percent of its imports.

‘Our government is treating the economy as being on a wartime footing and is making all-out efforts to overcome the crisis,’ Lee said in a budget speech to the National Assembly.

‘The current crisis is not like a passing shower that will stop, but rather like a massive storm that could last indefinitely,’ he added, asking lawmakers to swiftly pass the budget.

The plan allocates 4.8 trillion won ($3.1 billion) in cash handouts of 100,000 to 600,000 won per person for the bottom 70 percent of income earners, with payments scaled by income.

It also includes 2.8 trillion won in support for young people and low-income earners, and 2.6 trillion won for companies affected by the crisis in the Middle East.