Trump warns ‘whole civilisation will die’ if Iran does not accept demands; Iran warns retaliation

WASHINGTON/DUBAI: US President Donald Trump warned that “a whole civilisation will die” if Iran does not accept US demands, as tensions escalate between Washington and Tehran over the ongoing conflict.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said that with what he described as “complete and total regime change,” “maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen,” adding: “We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the world.”

US Vice President JD Vance said Washington has “tools in our toolkit that we so far haven’t decided to use” against Iran, but expressed hope that negotiations could avert further escalation.

Speaking to reporters during a visit to Hungary, Vance said the United States had largely achieved its military objectives and that further developments would depend on talks ahead of a looming deadline set by Washington.

“They’ve got to know we’ve got tools in our toolkit that we so far haven’t decided to use,” Vance said, adding that President Trump would decide whether to deploy them if Iran does not change its course.

He said the United States remained confident it could receive a response from Iran before the deadline, which is set for Tuesday.

Strikes reported on Kharg Island

Separately, Iranian media reported explosions on Kharg Island, a key oil export terminal, amid ongoing strikes in the region.

Iran’s Mehr news agency said “several attacks” had hit the island, while journalist Barak Ravid of Axios, citing a US official, said US forces carried out strikes on military targets there.

The reports could not be independently verified.

UAE says it intercepted missile, drones

The United Arab Emirates said its air defence systems intercepted one ballistic missile and 11 drones launched from Iran.

The defence ministry said since the start of the attacks, UAE air defences had engaged hundreds of missiles and thousands of drones, adding that no casualties had been reported in the latest incidents.

UAE Air Defenses engaged 1 Ballistic Missile and 11 UAV’s.

The Ministry of Defense announced that on April 7, 2026, UAE air defense systems successfully engaged 1 Ballistic missile and 11 UAV’s launched from Iran.

Since the onset of these blatant Iranian attacks, UAE air… pic.twitter.com/nadrRXRDRK

— وزارة الدفاع |MOD UAE (@modgovae) April 7, 2026

It did not mention an earlier reported incident in Sharjah, where two Pakistani nationals were said to have been injured in a separate attack.

Iran warns of wider retaliation

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned it would expand its response beyond the region if the United States crossed what it called “red lines.”

IRGC: Iran will carry out attacks WITHOUT previous restrictions

To US regional partners: 'Until today we exercised GREAT restraint in selecting retaliatory targets, but now all these considerations are REMOVED'

'US & allies will be deprived of region's oil and gas FOR YEARS' pic.twitter.com/Gcnyi9UERk

— RT (@RT_com) April 7, 2026

In a statement carried by state media, the IRGC said it would target infrastructure to deprive the United States and its allies of oil and gas if the conflict escalates further.

It said Iran had so far exercised restraint but added that “all reservations have since been removed” in terms of potential retaliation.