Trump calls off plans to 'obliterate' Iran's power plants hours before strikes due to start after 'very good talks' with Tehran
The US president said the pause will last for five days after warning it would 'obliterate' its power plants if it did not unblock the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.
Donald Trump has told the US military to postpone "all military strikes against Iranian power plants and energy infrastructure" after two days of "very good and productive conversations" with Tehran.
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In a typo-ridden post on Truth Social, the US president said the pause will last for five days but added that it depends on "the success of the ongoing meetings and discussions".
He said Washington and Tehran held negotiations "regarding a complete and total resolution of our hostilities in the Middle East".
However, Iran has denied that direct talks with the US took place, with a headline on Iranian state TV saying: “Trump retreated after Iran’s decisive warning.”
Iran's Fars News Agency, which is affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), has quoted an unnamed Iranian source as saying there is "no direct or indirect contact with Trump".
The source said after "hearing that our targets would include all power stations in West Asia, he backed down".
It comes after Trump issued an ultimatum to Iran, warning the US would "obliterate" its power plants unless its effective blockade on the Strait of Hormuz ended within 48 hours.
That deadline was due to expire later on Monday.
Iran has been blocking the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's busiest oil shipping channels, since the US and Israel attacked the country on 28 February.
Read more: British man jailed in Iran criticises Government for abandonment in war zone
Writing on Truth Social, Mr Trump said: "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!"
Meanwhile, Iran warned on Monday it will target electrical plants in Israel and across the Middle East if Mr Trump followed through on that threat.
Iran’s semiofficial Fars news agency published a list of such facilities, warning in a report citing the Iranian military that “all power plants, energy infrastructure, and information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure of the Zionist regime will be widely targeted.”
Its Defense Council also threatened to deploy mines to block the entire Persian Gulf if Iran’s coasts or islands are targeted, according to state media reports
Earlier on Monday, US Central Command said it struck a weapons prodcution plant in Iran.
It wrote on X: "The Qom Turbine Engine Production Plant produced gas turbine engines for attack drones and aircraft components used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
"The photo dated on March 6, 2026 shows the plant before U.S. airstrikes and the second photo shows the plant three days later after a devastating attack from U.S. forces."
The Qom Turbine Engine Production Plant produced gas turbine engines for attack drones and aircraft components used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The photo dated on March 6, 2026 shows the plant before U.S. airstrikes and the second photo shows the plant three days… pic.twitter.com/wCxiE7Qnka
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 23, 2026
It comes after Iran targeted Diego Garcia in the Chagos Islands before the Government gave the US permission to strike missile sites targeting the Strait of Hormuz on Friday.
It is not clear exactly when the two intermediate-range ballistic missiles were fired.
On Sunday, Iran denied targeting the military base on the island, with a senior official telling Al Jazeera that Tehran was not behind the reported missile attempt.
Brent crude swiftly fell 10% to stand at just over 101 dollars a barrel following the post on Mr Trump's Truth Social platform, having earlier hit around 114 dollars a barrel.
In financial markets, the UK's blue chip share index swung from more than 2.3% lower at one stage to stand 0.7% higher, up 67.7 points at 9986.
Oil prices have also eased back and London's FTSE 100 Index reversed early session falls after Trump announced the pause.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is heading an emergency Cobra meeting on Monday after a call on Sunday with Trump to discuss reopening the Strait of Hormuz shipping route after they both agreed it was “essential” to stabilising global energy markets.
Sir Keir was asked this morning whether targets in Britain could be hit. He replied that there was currently “no assessment that we’re being targeted.”
“We carry out assessments all the time in order to keep us safe, and there's no assessment that we're being targeted in that way at all.
“But of course, it's my job to ensure that British interests, British lives are always uppermost in my mind.
“What we need here is de-escalation, and that's why we had a statement from a number of countries last week about what we need to do about the Strait of Hormuz, which obviously needs careful coordination and a viable plan."