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.
Watch special coverage on Nightline, "War with Iran," each night on ABC and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.
The Sharif University of Technology has been hit by airstrikes, according to Iranian state media.
The strikes reportedly hit a gas station near the university gas station, causing a "temporary gas outage" in the Sharif neighborhood.
Sayed Reza Salihi-Amiri, Iran’s minister of cultural affairs and tourism, reportedly said in an interview with the Associated Press, "Trump is an unstable, delusional figure marked by a set of contradictions."
The comments come as President Donald Trump said Sunday that if no peace deal is reached with Iran in the next 48 hours, "we're blowing up the entire country."
On March 26, Trump extended an ultimatum a second time in the same week for Iran to completely open the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping traffic.
Over the weekend, Trump warned the Iranian government that if it doesn't fully open the critical maritime passageway for oil and trade by Tuesday, "you'll be living in Hell."
Salihi-Amiri reportedly told the AP of the Strait of Hormuz, "it is open to the world, but closed to Iran’s enemies."
The Iranian government has responded to President Donald Trump's threat of "blowing up the whole country" if the regime fails to open up the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday evening.
"Iran's reaction would be one of reciprocating any such attack," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Ismail Baghaei said in a statement on Sunday afternoon. "Our armed forces have made it clear that in case Iran's infrastructure is attacked, we would react in kind."
Baghaei said that if the United States carries out Trump's threat, Iranian forces would "target similar infrastructure that is owned or in any way or manner related to the United States or contributes to their act of aggression against Iran."
Earlier Sunday, Trump told ABC News that if Iran doesn't strike a peace deal, including opening up the critical Strait of Hormuz, "we're blowing up the whole country."
Also, in a post on his social media platform on Sunday, Trump said, "Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!!"
The Iranian Mission to the United Nations also released a statement in reaction to Trump's statements, saying, the president "openly threatens to destroy infrastructure essential to civilian survival in Iran."
"If the conscience of the United Nations were alive, it would not remain silent in the face of the overt and shameless threat by the war-mongering President of the United States to target civilian infrastructure. Trump seeks to drag the region into an endless war," the Iranian Mission to the United Nations said in a statement. "This is direct and public incitement to terrorize civilians and clear evidence of intent to commit war crimes."
The Iranian Mission said the "international community and all States have obligations to prevent such atrocious acts of war crimes."
"They must act now. Tomorrow is too late," the Iranian Mission's statement said.
-ABC News' William Gretsky
Iran and Oman are in active talks to manage and potentially reopen maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been heavily restricted since the war began on Feb 28, the two countries said on Sunday.
Officials from both sides met on Saturday to discuss practical options, according to the Omani Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"The meeting discussed possible options for ensuring smooth passage through the Strait of Hormuz during the circumstances witnessed in the region," the Omani Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told Al Jazeera that Iran is working on a joint protocol with Oman to "monitor" and "supervise" transit through the strait under wartime conditions.
Iranian officials are also stressing that decisions on the strait should be handled jointly by Tehran and Oman, pushing back on outside involvement.
News of the discussions came as pressure builds from the United States, including Trump’s 48-hour ultimatum for Iran to open the strait by 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday and growing concerns over global oil supply disruptions.
-ABC News' Dragana Jovanovic
President Trump reiterated his calls for NATO allies to help patrol the Strait of Hormuz, telling Politico, “They gotta get guts and go in.”
“Just send your ships up there and enjoy it," the president told Politico in a phone interview after his evening address Wednesday.
Asked why he didn’t outright mention NATO in his address last night, Trump claimed he did so “indirectly.”
“Well, I did indirectly. I talked about the people that use the -- it wasn't a NATO speech, it was a Middle East speech, but I did indirectly. I talked about the Strait, they weren't there,” Trump said.
During his address Wednesday night, Trump repeated his claim that the U.S. doesn’t depend on oil from the Strait like other countries do, saying “we’re there to help our allies.”
