U.S. ‌President ​Donald Trump said ​early Tuesday evening that he ​has ⁠agreed “to ⁠suspend ‌the bombing ⁠and attack on ‌Iran for a ​period ⁠of ⁠two ⁠weeks” subject to Iran reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

“This will be a double sided CEASEFIRE!,” he wrote on social media, adding that he agreed to it “subject ‌to the Islamic Republic of Iran agreeing to the COMPLETE, IMMEDIATE, and SAFE OPENING of the Strait of ​Hormuz.”

Iranian Foreign Minister ⁠Abbas ​Araghchi said passage through the Strait of Hormuz would be allowed for the next two weeks under Iranian military management.

As part of the agreement to stop bombing, Trump said he received a 10-point proposal from Iran and believes “it is a workable basis on which to negotiate.”

He said that nearly all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the U.S. and ​Iran, and the two-week period will allow a deal to be finalized.

Iran’s Supreme Security Council said negotiations with ‌the United States would begin on Friday, Iranian ⁠state ⁠media reported, ‌adding that talks do not signal the end of the ⁠war.

Shifting goals and timelines

Trump, who has offered ⁠shifting goals and timelines for the war, reiterated that he felt Washington’s ⁠objectives had been achieved.

The U.S. president had earlier given Iran an ultimatum to open the Strait of Hormuz by the end of Tuesday or face bombing of civilian infrastructure, in what would be the biggest escalation yet of the war.

He again warned ​Iran to make ​a ⁠deal ⁠on ‌Tuesday, saying a “whole ⁠civilization will die ‌tonight” if an agreement ​is ⁠not reached ⁠to ⁠end ⁠the ​conflict.

As ‌the clock ticked down on Trump’s deadline to unleash “hell,” strikes on Iran intensified throughout the day, hitting railway and road bridges, an airport and a petrochemical plant and knocking out power lines, according to Iranian media.

Trump threatens ‘a whole civilization will die tonight’ ahead of Iran deadline

U.S. President Donald Trump said in a social media post this morning that ‘a whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.’ Trump has set a deadline for 8 p.m. ET on Tuesday for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran responded by declaring it would no longer hold back from hitting infrastructure of its Gulf neighbours and claimed to have carried out fresh strikes on a ship in the Gulf and Saudi industrial facilities linked to U.S. firms.

Trump had threatened to destroy every bridge and power plant in ​Iran within four hours. Iran says it would retaliate against infrastructure of U.S. allies in the Gulf, whose desert cities would be uninhabitable without power or water.

Pope calls threats ‘unacceptable’

Brian Finucane, a former U.S. State Department legal adviser now with the International Crisis Group, said Trump’s threats “could plausibly be interpreted as ⁠a threat to commit genocide” under U.S. and international law.

In an unusual move, the Pope also addressed Trump’s threats, calling them “unacceptable.” Leo, who is also known for choosing his words carefully, has been ⁠ramping up his criticism of the U.S-Israel war against Iran in recent weeks.

“There are certainly issues here of ​international law, but even more than that, it is a ⁠moral question for ⁠the good of the [world’s] people,” ‌he said.

It is rare for the Pope, who leads 1.4 billion Catholics around the world, to respond directly to a world leader.

Democrats in the U.S. Congress also condemned Trump’s post, with several legislators calling him “unhinged.” The Democratic leadership called for the House to be recalled, and for Republicans to “to put patriotic duty over party loyalty” and vote with Democrats to “end this reckless war of choice.”

California Rep. Ted Lieu, a former military prosecutor, called on generals to disobey any illegal orders.

Prime Minister Mark Carney, at a domestic policy announcement in Brampton, Ont., said in response to a CBC News question that Canada “expects all parties in this conflict, in any conflict, to respect international laws, the rules of engagement, and that means not targeting, certainly, civilians or civilian infrastructure.”

“It’s a point we’ve made publicly and privately,” Carney added.

Among the reports of strikes inside Iran throughout the day were attacks on railway bridges, a highway bridge, a petrochemical plant and an airport. Power was knocked out in parts of Karaj just west of Tehran by a strike on transmission lines and a substation.

Explosions were reported on Kharg Island, site of Iran’s main oil export terminal which Trump has publicly mused about destroying or seizing.

Another strike hit the Khorramabad International Airport in western Iran, and a strike on an unidentified target in Alborz province, northwest of Tehran, killed 18 people, according to state media.

Israel confirms striking bridges, railways

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israeli warplanes struck bridges and railways in Iran. In a statement released by his office, Netanyahu claimed Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard was using them to transport materials to make weapons. Israel had earlier issued a Farsi-language warning telling Iranians to avoid trains throughout the day.

A synagogue in Tehran was destroyed overnight by what Iran described as Israeli airstrikes. Footage in Iranian media showed Hebrew texts scattered in the debris.

“The synagogue building was completely destroyed and our Torah scrolls were left under the rubble,” said Homayoun Sameh, a lawmaker who represents Iran’s Jewish community, one of the Middle East’s largest outside Israel. Israel’s military had no immediate comment.

Iran responded to an overnight attack on a major petrochemical site with a strike on Saudi Arabia’s huge downstream oil industry site at Jubail, where Western oil firms operate multi-billion dollar ventures. Video verified by Reuters showed smoke and flames rising.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said in a statement that Tehran’s response would “deprive America and its allies in ‌the region of oil and gas for years.”

“America’s regional partners should know that up to today we have shown great restraint for the sake of good neighborliness and have had some consideration in choosing targets for retaliation,” it said. “But all these considerations have since been removed.”

Iranians hoped the threatened escalation could be averted.

“I hope it is another bluff by Trump,” Shima, 37, from the central city of Isfahan, told Reuters by phone. Like many, she said she wanted the hardline clerical government removed, “but infrastructure being destroyed and people being unable to build the future of ​the country is another matter.”

Trump has abruptly called off similar threats over the past several weeks, citing what he has described as productive negotiations with unidentified figures in Iran, though Tehran has denied any substantive talks have taken place.

The two countries have so far exchanged proposals, with Pakistan acting as the main ⁠go-between, but there has been no sign of compromise, with both sides claiming to have won the war and demanding concessions to end it.