US-Iran war updates: Donald Trump’s latest threat to target power plants, bridges unless Tehran accepts deal

ACT Greens Leader Shane Rattenbury is leaving politics after a 17-year political career and just weeks after party members rejected a controversial push to enter a power-sharing arrangement with the Liberals to end Labor’s dominance in the territory.

Announcing his departure on Monday morning, the former Attorney General and member for the inner-Canberra electorate of Kurrajong described serving in the ACT Assembly as the “privilege of my life”.

“For my entire time in this place, the Greens have held the balance of power, and that has been such an interesting journey,” he said.

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Iran has warned the US it will “soon respond” to US “armed maritime piracy”, after the US Navy shot and captured an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that attempted to break through a US blockade in the Strait of Hormuz.

The incident, which saw the US Navy strike the Irania-flagged ship’s engine room, came after Tehran reclosed the Strait of Hormuz, something that outraged US President Donald Trump.

The escalation has also added to concerns around upcoming peace talks, set to be hosted in Pakistan, with Iran currently not planning to attend.

Tehran officials say the US must completely lift its blockade before it will further engage with the US on police, a stalemate war with the US, which wants Iran to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz before pulling military assets further back.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has expressed “frustration” at the war in the Middle East as the Government enters the “home stretch” in preparing next month’s Budget, warning that expectations of a jump in revenue are unlikely to happen.

“It does feel like two steps forward and one step back when it comes to these developments,” Dr Chalmers told reporters after returning from a G20 meeting in Washington.

“If there’s one prevailing vibe that comes from the international colleagues, it’s really, I think, a sense of frustration about how long this war in the Middle East has been playing out, and what that means for the global economy and for everyone’s domestic economies as well.”

Dr Chalmers says the May 12 budget will be “responsible” and focused on resilience and reform, flagging tax reform and productivity measures, along with savings and cutting compliance costs.

“And when it comes to changes to revenue, I wanted to be really clear in saying that we don’t currently expect the sort of revenue bump that you have seen speculated about and many of you have written about”.

Footage has emerged of the moment a US Navy ship confronted an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that was attempting to defy Donald Trump’s Strait of Hormuz blockade.

“Vacate your engine room. We are prepared to subject you to disabling fire,” a man can be heard saying before the USS Spruance open fired at the ship.

Iranian officials say they have “no plans” to enter into renewed peace negotiations with the US.

Iranian state TV states Tehran has “no plans for now to participate”.

Multiple agencies in Iran are now reporting the same line.

US President Donald Trump says his representatives will be in Pakistan for talks, the location where a 14-day ceasefire was achieved, however, he added it will be his honour to end Iran’s killing machine should they not accept his deal.

US President Donald Trump says an Iranian-flagged cargo ship attempted to pass his blockade, with the US Navy “blowing a hole” in the engine room before taking custody of the vessel.

“Today, an Iranian-flagged cargo ship named TOUSKA, nearly 900 feet long and weighing almost as much as an aircraft carrier, tried to get past our Naval Blockade, and it did not go well for them,” Mr Trump said.

“The U.S. Navy Guided Missile Destroyer USS SPRUANCE intercepted the TOUSKA in the Gulf of Oman, and gave them fair warning to stop.

“The Iranian crew refused to listen, so our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engineroom.

“Right now, U.S. Marines have custody of the vessel. The TOUSKA is under U.S. Treasury Sanctions because of their prior history of illegal activity.

“We have full custody of the ship, and are seeing what’s on board!”

Although US President Donald Trump says the US will attend peace talks, whether Iran will turn up remains unclear.

There was no immediate confirmation from Iran that it would attend any new talks on Sunday.

Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported that there had been no decision taken to send a delegation while a United States blockade of Iranian ports was in place.

A White House official said the US delegation would be headed by Vice President JD Vance, who led the war’s first peace talks a week ago.

Mr Trump’s envoy Steve Kushner and the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner would also attend.

Iran’s chief negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, earlier said the two sides had made progress but were still far apart on nuclear issues and the Strait of Hormuz.

The vital shipping strait remained closed on Sunday, a day after Iranian forces fired on two vessels that tried to cross.

Iran, which has blocked off the strait to ships apart from its own since the United States and Israel attacked on February 28, had announced on Friday it would reopen it.

But it reversed that decision on Saturday after Mr Trump declined to lift a US blockade of Iranian ports.

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US President Donald Trump has renewed threats to wipe out Iran’s power plants and bridges after Tehran closed the Strait of Hormuz and fired at vessels in the waterway.

“Iran decided to fire bullets yesterday in the Strait of Hormuz — A Total Violation of our Ceasefire Agreement!,” he wrote on Truth Social.

“Many of them were aimed at a French Ship, and a Freighter from the United Kingdom. That wasn’t nice, was it?”

Mr Trump said, despite Iran’s actions, his representatives were on their way to Islamabad, Pakistan, for negotiations.

“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!” he wrote.

“They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the DEAL, it will be my Honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents, for the last 47 years.

“IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!”