Iran Urges Human Chains Around Key Sites Before US Deadline

Iranian officials called on citizens, including youth and children, to form human chains around power plants and other key infrastructure sites on Tuesday, as a midnight deadline set by U.S. President Donald Trump loomed over demands for Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The appeals, broadcast on state media, aimed to deter potential American and Israeli strikes amid an escalating conflict that has disrupted global oil flows and heightened fears of broader regional war.

The initiative, branded as a "human chain for a bright tomorrow," was promoted through government channels and social media campaigns. Alireza Rahimi, Iran's deputy minister of youth affairs, urged young people, athletes, artists, university students and professors to gather at 2 p.m. local time around power plants, describing them as "national assets and the nation's capital." In a televised address, Rahimi said participants should form circles regardless of political views to highlight the risks of targeting civilian sites. Separately, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Hossein Yekta encouraged parents to send children to checkpoints and sensitive locations. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian...