Trump says 'a whole civilization will die tonight' ahead of deadline for Iran

Middle East ConflictTrump says 'a whole civilization will die tonight' ahead of deadline for IranTrump's threat is among his most extreme rhetoric toward Iran since the war started. Listen to this article with a free account00:0000:00President Donald Trump, pictured mimicking firing a gun during a news conference at the White House, escalated his rhetoric against Tehran on Tuesday.Tom Williams / CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty ImagesShareAdd NBC News to GoogleApril 7, 2026, 9:48 AM EDTBy Megan LebowitzPresident Donald Trump threatened in a Truth Social post Tuesday that "a whole civilization will die tonight" as the deadline nears for an agreement on a ceasefire in the war with Iran.Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.The message is his most extreme public rhetoric to date against the country and comes less than 12 hours before he says the U.S. will launch attacks on the country's power plants and bridges over Tehran's continued disruption of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. "A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again," Trump said in the post. "I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will.""However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?" Trump wrote, referring to the killings of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and other leaders, although it's unclear what the full impact of their deaths has been on Iran's government. A man walks walks in a building destroyed in a joint attack by Israel and the U.S. on Monday, in Tehran.Majid Saeedi / Getty Images"We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World," Trump continued. "47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end. God Bless the Great People of Iran!"In recent days, the president has made a series...