Iran strikes near Israeli nuclear research center as Trump threatens attacks on Iranian power plants

Iran's missile strikes near Israel's nuclear site escalate tensions as Trump threatens retaliation against Iranian power plants.

Iranian missiles struck two communities in southern Israel late on Saturday (March 21, 2026), leaving buildings shattered and dozens injured in dual attacks not far from Israel's main nuclear research center, while President Donald Trump warned the U.S. will “obliterate” Iranian power plants if it doesn't fully open the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.

The developments signaled the war was moving in a dangerous new direction at the start of its fourth week.

Iran-Israel war LIVE updates on March 22

Mr Trump — who is facing increasing pressure at home to secure the strait as oil prices soar — issued the ultimatum in a social media post while he spent the weekend at his Florida home.

Mr. Trump said he's giving Iran 48 hours to open the vital waterway or face a new round of attacks. He said the U.S. would destroy “various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” Iran warned early on Sunday that any strike on its energy facilities would prompt attacks on US and Israeli energy and infrastructure assets in the region, according to a statement carried by Iran's state media and semiofficial outlets, citing an Iranian military spokesperson.

The Strait of Hormuz, which connects the Persian Gulf to the rest of the globe's oceans, is a critical pathway for the world's flow of oil. Attacks on commercial ships and threats of further strikes have stopped nearly all tankers from carrying oil, gas and other goods through the passage. That's also led to cuts in output from some of the world's largest producers, because their crude has nowhere to go.