Iran’s exiled crown prince has called on Donald Trump to spare civilian infrastructure.
Reza Pahlavi urged the US and Israel to “eradicate” the Islamic Republic and its “apparatus of repression”.
“The Islamic Republic’s infrastructure is a machine of repression and terror, deployed to prevent that future from being realised,” he wrote on X.
However, he added that “Iran’s civilian infrastructure belongs to the Iranian people and to the future of a free Iran”.
Mr Trump on Saturday threatened to “obliterate” Iran’s power plants unless Tehran reopened the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours.
The strait, which is a conduit for one-fifth of the world’s oil, has been closed for weeks, causing global energy prices to soar.
Iran responded by threatening to “irreversibly destroy” energy infrastructure across the Middle East if he followed through with the threat.
US ‘accelerates deployment of thousands of marines’ to Kharg Island
The US has accelerated its deployment of marines and its navy to the Middle East, it has been reported.
Donald Trump already has troops on standby to invade Tehran’s critical oil depot of Kharg Island.
But The Jerusalem Post reports that senior US officials have informed their counterparts in Israel and other nations that it appears there may be no alternative but for a ground invasion to be launched.
Discussions have begun within the US administration regarding whether to occupy the island to force Iran to stop blocking vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
A US source told the publication that “the US military has accelerated the deployment of thousands of Marines and Navy personnel to the Middle East.”
Mr Trump has already dispatched the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), made up of the USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship, and two amphibious transport docks, USS San Diego and USS New Orleans, with about 2,200 marines embarked across the fleet.
A second, similarly sized fighting force, led by amphibious assault ship USS Boxer, set sail from San Diego on Wednesday, reportedly destined for the Middle East. It is accompanied by two transport docks, USS Comstock and USS Portland.
Combined, the two task groups have the potential to deliver an invasion force of more than 4,000 marines, who could storm Kharg Island in a matter of weeks.