Iran live updates: Trump threatens Iran infrastructure strikes if talks fail

ABCNews logo
Last updated: Monday, March 30, 2026 3:59PM GMT
ABC News Live

President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes attack targeting military and government sites, officials said.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was among those killed in Tehran on the first day of strikes, with his son Mojtaba Khamenei later chosen to succeed him. Iran has responded with missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, regional U.S. bases and multiple Gulf nations. Iran is also attempting to block some shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Israel is also intensifying its long-running strike campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon and expanding its ground operations in the south of the country.

Watch special coverage on Nightline, "War with Iran," each night on ABC and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.

ByNicholas Kerr and Alexandra Hutzler ABCNews logo
Mar 26, 2026, 12:28 AM GMT

Trump prepared to 'unleash hell' if Iran doesn't make deal, White House warns

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt offered little new insight into the status of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, but warned on Wednesday that President Donald Trump is prepared to "unleash hell" if Tehran balks at making a deal to end the war.

"The president's preference is always peace. There does not need to be any more death and destruction," Leavitt told reporters at a press briefing.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Washington.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks with reporters in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House, Wednesday, March 25, 2026, in Washington.

"But if Iran fails to accept the reality of the current moment, if they fail to understand that they have been defeated militarily and will continue to be, President Trump will ensure they are hit harder than they have ever been hit before," she continued. "President Trump does not bluff, and he is prepared to unleash hell. Iran should not miscalculate again."

MORE | Trump prepared to 'unleash hell' if Iran doesn't make deal, White House warns, amid questions on status of talks

ByEmily Guskin ABCNews logo
Mar 25, 2026, 10:45 PM GMT

Most Americans oppose military action in Iran: Polls

Four new polls, one consistent finding: Most Americans oppose the United States' strikes in Iran.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted March 20-23 found 61% of Americans disapproving of U.S. military strikes in Iran, while 35% approved.

A Pew Research Center poll, conducted March 16-22, found 59% of Americans saying the U.S. made the wrong decision in using military force in Iran, while 38% said it was the right decision.

President Donald Trump speaks during the swearing in for Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington.
President Donald Trump speaks during the swearing in for Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington.

A Quinnipiac poll conducted March 19-23 found 54% of registered voters opposed to the U.S. military action in Iran while 39% supported it.

An AP-NORC poll conducted March 19-23 found 59% of Americans saying U.S. military action in Iran has gone too far, while just 26% say it has been about right and 13% say it has not gone far enough.

Read more on the polls here.

ABCNews logo
Mar 25, 2026, 7:27 PM GMT

Iran threatens 'relentless' attacks if enemies try to occupy island

Iran has intelligence that its enemies, with help from a regional country, are planning to occupy an Iranian island, the speaker of Iran's parliament, Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, said in a post on X.

Iranian Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaks with the media in a media conference at the Iranian Parliament building in Tehran, Iran, on December 2, 2025.
Iranian Parliament Speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaks with the media in a media conference at the Iranian Parliament building in Tehran, Iran, on December 2, 2025.

Ghalibaf warned the unspecified regional country that if this happens, "all the vital infrastructure of that regional country will, without restriction, become the target of relentless attacks."

ABCNews logo
Mar 25, 2026, 4:01 PM GMT

Iran rejects US proposal, lays out 5 conditions for ending imposed war

Press TV, Iran's English language state media, is quoting an official saying Iran is rejecting the U.S.'s 15 point proposal to end the war.

"Iran will end the war when it decides to do so and when its own conditions are met," the official said.

Vehicles drive under billboards along a highway in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 24, 2026.
Vehicles drive under billboards along a highway in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 24, 2026.

Press TV says the "official outlined five specific conditions under which Iran would agree to end the war."

According to Press TV, the conditions include a complete halt to "aggression and assassinations;" the establishment of concrete mechanisms to ensure that the war is not reimposed on Iran; guaranteed and clearly defined payment of war damages and reparations; and the conclusion of the war across all fronts and for all resistance groups involved throughout the region.

Iran also wants recognition over its sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and assurance that it will remain Iran's natural and legal right, and it constitutes a guarantee for the implementation of the other party's commitments, according to Press TV.