Trump has turned up the rhetoric on Iran again (Picture: Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

Thousands of American paratroopers are beginning to land in the Middle East as Donald Trump warned he could blow up crucial infrastructure in Iran if no deal is reached to end the war.

The U.S. Army’s elite 82nd Airborne Division have started arriving in the Middle East as President Donald Trump weighs his next steps in the war against Iran.

The move would expand options to include ​the deployment of forces inside Iranian territory.

The US President wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform that he was considering ‘blowing up and completely obliterating’ Iran’s power plants and oil wells.

Such a move would likely exacerbate the global energy crisis and make it considerably more difficult for Iranians to rebuild after the war,even if the current regime was to crumble.

Trump also threatened to destroy ‘all desalinization plants’,facilities that perform the vital work of making saltwater drinkable in a region with few freshwater resources.

He wrote: ‘This will be in retribution for our many soldiers,and others,that Iran has butchered and killed over the old Regime’s 47 year “Reign of Terror.”’

It is not the first time he has threatened Iran’s power infrastructure – earlier this month,he said he would take the action within 48 hours if the Strait of Hormuz was not opened to shipping.

However,Trump later backed down and said he would give Tehran a five-day extension after ‘constructive’ and ‘productive’ talks.

That deadline also later expired without any further action.

Earlier today,the president again changed his mind about what he wants from the war in Iran,saying his ‘favourite thing is to take the oil’ a month on from the opening strikes.

Trump has previously claimed he started the war with Israel at the end of March to encourage regime change and to destroy any chance of Tehran building a nuclear weapon.

But in a new interview with the Financial Times,he compared his plans in Iran to the operation in Venezuela at the start of the year,which ended with the US controlling its oil industry.

The president told the newspaper: ‘To be honest with you,my favourite thing is to take the oil in Iran,but some stupid people back in the US say,“Why are you doing that?”

‘But they’re stupid people.’

He added that the US could take Kharg Island,an economically crucial site,‘very easily’ but said ‘we have a lot of options’.

A map of the desalination plants in the Middle East (Picture: Murat Usubali/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Around 3,500 US troops arrived in the Middle East at the weekend as Trump ramps up the military presence there.

The unit,led by the warship USS Tripoli,is composed of sailors and marines alongside assault and transport assets.

It brings the full US military presence in the region to 50,000 – around 10,000 more than usual.

A number of power and water desalination plants have also been struck by Iranian missiles in recent days.

One strike at a desalination facility in Kuwait killed one worker,an Indian national,and caused extensive ‘significant material damage’ to the site according to authorities.

Such facilities are indispensable in the Middle East,a region which receives just 2% of the planet’s renewable fresh water for 6% of the world population.

An explosion in Tehran following strikes by the US and Israel (Picture: Xinhua/Shutterstock)

Iranian military spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaqari said in a video posted yesterday that the soldiers were being led ‘into the swamp of death’.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf,Iran’s parliamentary speaker,also warned that his country’s forces are ‘waiting for the arrival of American troops to set them on fire’.

However,Trump claimed in his interview with the Financial Times that it was Ghalibaf who authorised his ‘present’ of tankers permitted to pass safely through the Strait.

The US took a blow at the weekend when an Iranian strike on the Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia destroyed an E-3 Sentry – a jet worth $500m equipped with vital radar capabilities.

At least 12 US soldiers were also injured,two significantly,in the attack.

Meanwhile,Keir Starmer is preparing to meet business leaders in Downing Street to discuss the economic damage that may result from the conflict.

This morning,the Brent crude oil price reached above $116 a barrel in Asia,and it is on track to hit its biggest monthly gain on record.

Senior representatives from the energy,shipping and financial services industries are expected to join the Prime Minister alongside British maritime operations commander Major General Richard Cantrill.

Meanwhile,Chancellor Rachel Reeves will join an emergency G7 meeting alongside Energy Secretary Ed Miliband.

White van man is ‘bleeding cash’

The RAC has flagged growing concerns over the impact of a growing disparity between the prices of diesel and petrol.

According to data released by the motoring services company,the difference has reached the highest level since at least 2003 with diesel an average of 28.5p more expensive per litre than petrol.

The UK is more reliant on imports of diesel,as its refineries are more geared towards producing petrol.

Diesel engines are particularly common in light goods vehicles such as vans.

RAC Foundation director Steve Gooding said: ‘Diesel is the lifeblood of millions of small businesses,but today white van man is bleeding cash just to stay on the road.

‘Whether you drive or not,soaring diesel prices will take money out of your pocket,either at the pump or in the bills you pay for everything from calling out the plumber to getting a home delivery.’

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