A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
In a post online this morning, President Trump wrote that, quote, "a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought again." He says Iran still has time to agree to a deal to open the Strait of Hormuz or else the U.S. will destroy Iran's power plants and bridges. This morning, the U.S. already struck some key military targets, defenses around Iran's biggest oil production facility. Israel also targeted infrastructure across Iran today.
LEILA FADEL, HOST:
NPR's Daniel Estrin is on the line from Tel Aviv and joins me now. Good morning, Daniel.
DANIEL ESTRIN, BYLINE: Good morning, Leila.
FADEL: Daniel, we're hearing this very ominous threat that an entire civilization will die tonight as attacks are ongoing. What is the significance of the sites the U.S. and Israel are targeting today?
ESTRIN: The U.S. struck military targets on Iran's strategic Kharg Island. That's according to a U.S. official not authorized to speak publicly who spoke on condition of anonymity. The targets struck on that island were not oil infrastructure. They were strikes on targets the U.S. hit previously in the war. The U.S. official would not say what the purpose of the strikes was, but we do know that Kharg Island is the center of Iran's oil industry, and President Trump has previously threatened to seize control of the island and oil facilities.
And Israel's military posted a warning today on social media for Iranians not to take any trains or be near railroad tracks across Iran today. Israel then announced it had completed strikes on infrastructure tied to the Iranian regime, strikes across Iran. There are already reports of railways attacked. Targeting infrastructure that's not used in direct support of military action does raise the prospect of war crimes, according to the Geneva Convention.
Railways may very well serve the Iranian regime. We do know that many Iranian civilians also use the trains to visit their family across the country and many Iranians have been using trains to leave the country to just get some internet across the border in neighboring Turkey.
FADEL: What do we know about ceasefire efforts? What's on the table?
ESTRIN: Well, NPR has heard from an Egyptian official involved in those latest efforts who spoke to us on condition of anonymity to discuss the efforts. This involves Pakistani, Turkish and Egyptian officials who have all been talking to Iran, and they've been holding intensive talks with the U.S. since last night to try to reach a ceasefire. But the gaps still appear to be very wide. The U.S. wants the Strait of Hormuz opened as a precondition, and experts say that Iran wants to guarantee its control and its sovereignty over that key waterway, which has really proven in this war to be a strategic lever for Iran. So we're not seeing any signs that Iran is willing to compromise on the Strait of Hormuz, and the clock is ticking. Trump's deadline of 8 p.m. tonight is approaching. Although, remember, we have seen him delay his deadline many times before.
FADEL: Yeah, that's right. If Trump does follow through with this threat to bomb all power plants and bridges in Iran, where could the war lead? And how would this square with Israel's goals in the war?
ESTRIN: There are a lot of concerns across the region that Iran could retaliate. Iran has threatened that, and that could affect millions of people across the region and in Israel if Iran targets power plants in the region. Analysts say that President Trump seems to be looking for a quick deal to wrap up the war here, but there's a lot of concern in the region that Trump could exit the war, and Iran's core capabilities could be left intact, including its enriched uranium. And now with Israel gearing up to bomb potentially Iranian trains today, that just helps Trump, adding pressure on the Iranians.
FADEL: NPR's Daniel Estrin in Tel Aviv. Thank you, Daniel.
ESTRIN: You're welcome. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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