WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� President Donald Trump’s about his administration’s plans for Iran 鈥� some laced with profanity, some threatening deeply destructive, nation-shattering actions 鈥� have raised questions about
Here’s a short breakdown of some of the issues at play.
Could this raise war crimes questions?
In his , Trump threatened to blow up every bridge and power plant in Iran, an action that would be so far-reaching that some experts in military law said it could constitute a war crime. The issue could turn on whether the power plants were legitimate military targets, whether the attacks were proportional compared with what Iran has done and whether civilian casualties were minimized.
Trump鈥檚 threat did not seem to account for the harm to civilians, prompting Democrats in Congress, some U.N. officials and scholars in military law to say such strikes would violate international law.
The president鈥檚 eventual actions often fall short of his all-encompassing rhetoric in the moment, but his and bridges were unambiguous both on Sunday and Monday as night for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz.
that he鈥檚 鈥渘ot at all鈥� concerned about committing war crimes as he continues to threaten destruction. He also warned that every power plant will be 鈥渂urning, exploding and never to be used again.鈥�
He followed up Tuesday morning with this threat on Truth Social: 鈥淎 whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don鈥檛 want that to happen, but it probably will.鈥� Trump pulled back on that threat Tuesday night, and Iran鈥檚 Supreme National Security Council said it had accepted a two-week ceasefire.
Last month, shortly after the war started, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said there would be 鈥渘o stupid rules of engagement, no nation building quagmire, no democracy building exercise, no politically correct wars. We fight to win and we don鈥檛 waste time or lives.鈥�
What the U.N. and experts say about Trump’s words
A spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General Ant贸nio Guterres on Monday warned that attacking such infrastructure is banned under international law.
鈥淓ven if specific civilian infrastructure were to qualify as a military objective,鈥� Stephane Dujarric said, an attack would still be prohibited if it risks 鈥渆xcessive incidental civilian harm.鈥�
Rachel VanLandingham, a Southwestern Law School professor who served as a judge advocate general in the U.S. Air Force, said civilians are likely to die if power is cut to hospitals and water treatment plans. 鈥淲hat Trump is saying is, 鈥榃e don鈥檛 care about precision, we don鈥檛 care about impact on civilians, we鈥檙e just going to take out all of Iranian power generating capacity,鈥欌�� the retired lieutenant colonel said.
Shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint in the Persian Gulf through which 20% of the world鈥檚 oil normally flows, has been all but halted, sending oil prices soaring and roiling the stock market.
Under the U.N. Charter, nations are only permitted to use force against another nation if it has been authorized by the Security Council or in self-defense, said Marieke de Hoon, an associate professor of international criminal law at the University of Amsterdam.
What Trump is threatening to attack
As the conflict has entered its second month, Trump has escalated his warnings to bomb Iran鈥檚 infrastructure, , central to , and
In a Truth Social post on March 30, Trump warned that the U.S. would obliterate 鈥渁ll of their Electric Generating Plants, Oil Wells and Kharg Island (and possibly all desalinization plants!), which we have purposefully not yet 鈥榯ouched.鈥欌��
On Easter Sunday, Trump threatened in an expletive-laden post that Iran will face 鈥淧ower Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one,鈥� while adding that 鈥測ou鈥檒l be living in Hell鈥� unless the strait reopens.
鈥淭his strikes me as clearly a threat of unlawful action,鈥� said Michael Schmitt, a professor emeritus at the U.S. Naval War College and an international law professor at the University of Reading in Britain.
A power facility can be attacked under the laws of armed conflict if it provides electricity to a military base in addition to civilians, Schmitt said. But the strike must not 鈥渃ause disproportionate harm to the civilian population, and you鈥檝e done everything to minimize that harm.鈥�
Harm does not include inconvenience or fear, said Schmitt, who has taught military commanders. But it does mean severe mental suffering, physical injury or illness.
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Associated Press journalists Ben Finley, Lindsay Whitehurst, Gary Fields and Mike Corder contributed to this report.
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