US-Israeli aggression on Iran: What happened on 37th day of the imposed war

By Press TV Website Staff

Thirty-seven days into the US-Israeli war on Iran, launched on February 28 with the assassination of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, and top-ranking commanders, the military campaign continues to attack civilian, industrial, and strategic infrastructure across the country.

US-Israeli airstrikes again targeted multiple regions across the country, hitting sites in Tehran, Karaj, Khuzestan, Ardabil, Abadan and Boroujerd, amid escalating threats from Washington and an expanding list of retaliatory options from Tehran.

US President Donald Trump renewed his threat to attack Iran’s bridges and power plants, warning that the country will be “living in Hell” if the Strait of Hormuz is "not reopened." 

Iranian forces, meanwhile, delivered one of the most significant blows of the war, destroying two US C-130 transport planes and two Black Hawk helicopters during an American mission to recover the pilot of a downed US F-15 fighter jet in southern Isfahan.

IRGC also reported the downing of an MQ-9 Reaper drone in the same area, adding to the list of drones downed and destroyed by the Iranian integrated air defense systems.

The threat of escalation looms over the wider region. Russia has evacuated 200 additional staff from the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant after another US-Israeli deadly attack on its perimeter, with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warning that continued strikes could expose the entire region to radiological danger.

At the same time, maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has plunged to unprecedented lows, with fewer than 10 vessels crossing daily and thousands of ships now stranded in Persian Gulf waters amid the effective closure of the waterway to US and allied vessels.

With global energy markets under acute strain, OPEC+ is preparing to adjust production levels, crude prices have surged past $100 per barrel, and US gasoline prices have reached their highest level since 2022.

Key developments from Day 37 of the imposed war:

• Iranian forces destroyed two US C-130 transport planes and two Black Hawk helicopters in southern Isfahan province while they were on a mission to retrieve the US pilot of a downed F-15 American fighter jet.
• The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) also reported downing an MQ-9 Reaper and Hermes-900 drones in the same area in Isfahan.
• Trump claimed the rescue of the second pilot of the downed F-15 fighter jet in Iran, writing on Truth Social: “We got him,” without providing any evidence.
• US-Israeli airstrikes struck multiple civilian and industrial sites across Iran, including Tehran, Karaj, Khuzestan, Ardabil, Abadan, and Boroujerd.
• Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the AeroSol Aviation Solutions drone manufacturing plant in Petah Tikva, Israeli-occupied territories, was destroyed following a direct hit by an Iranian ballistic missile on April 2.
• Trump has renewed his threat to attack Iran’s bridges and power plants, saying the country will be “living in Hell” if the Strait of Hormuz is not "reopened."
• Reuters, citing an Israeli military official, claimed the Israeli regime is preparing for strikes on Iran’s energy facilities pending US approval.
• Al Jazeera reported the same source as saying such attacks could occur within the coming week.
• According to Iranian media, an informed Iranian source warned that if Trump continues his threats and targets Iran’s energy sector, Iran will strike Israel’s power grid and oil facilities as well as pipelines in Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
• Russia evacuated 200 additional staff from the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant following a deadly attack on the facility’s perimeter.
• Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi warned that continued raids risk exposing the entire region to radioactive contamination.
• Mohamed ElBaradei, former IAEA director general, urged Persian Gulf states to intervene after Trump issued a 48-hour ultimatum to Iran, warning the region could be turned “into a ball of fire.”
• Iran’s mission to the UN condemned Trump’s public threat to destroy critical civilian infrastructure, including power plants and bridges, calling it a “blatant and shameless” attempt to drag the region into endless war.
• Iranian Deputy FM Kazem Gharibabadi and Oman’s Sheikh Khalifa bin Ali discussed the safe passage of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
• New data showed near-total paralysis of maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, with daily vessel transit collapsing from about 138 in late February to fewer than 10, marking a 90 percent drop.
• Al Jazeera, citing Lloyd’s List and IMO figures, reported 2,000-3,000 commercial vessels stranded behind the strait and some 3,200 ships adrift in Persian Gulf waters, leaving nearly 20,000 sailors stuck in the region.
• An Iraqi oil tanker passed through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran said Iraq was exempt from restrictions. Iraq remains in severe economic distress, as most of its exports rely on the strait.
• Iraq’s FM Fuad Hussein thanked Iran for allowing Iraqi oil tankers to transit.
• Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the US-Israeli war against Iran has created a “geostrategic deadlock” and called on the international community to intensify efforts to end the imposed war.
• Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni visited Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, as Europe scrambles amid ongoing disruptions to oil and gas supplies due to US-Israeli aggression on Iran.
• FM Araghchi and his Pakistani counterpart Mohammad Ishaq Dar spoke by phone on Saturday night to review regional developments.
• French Defence Minister Catherine Vautrin stated that France is not supplying offensive weapons to Israel during the US-Israeli aggression on Iran.
• OPEC members are set to meet on Sunday to decide on oil production levels for the month of May.
• Oil prices have again surged past $100 per barrel, up from $65 before the war.
• Bloomberg reported that OPEC+ plans to increase production by 206,000 barrels per day amid the acute energy crisis.
• US Senator Elizabeth Warren posted GasBuddy data showing the average US gasoline price has hit $4 per gallon, the highest since August 2022.
• Gasoline prices in the US rose $1.059 per gallon from late February to late March, while diesel increased $1.701, the largest monthly jump in GasBuddy’s recorded history.
• Planet Labs announced it will indefinitely withhold satellite imagery of Iran and the West Asian region at the request of the Trump administration.
• In a Fox News interview, Trump said the US had supplied weapons to anti-Iran terrorists before the war, claiming the transfers were carried out "through Kurds."

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