US resumes strikes on Iran as war centers on control of Strait of Hormuz
WASHINGTON (TNND) — Brent crude prices surged above $95 per barrel Tuesday afternoon on news the United States resumed strikes against Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz, the highest price since late July. President Donald Trump threatened to escalate strikes if Iran retaliates.
Brent crude prices surged above $95 per barrel Tuesday afternoon on news the United States resumed strikes against Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz, the highest price since late July. President Donald Trump threatened to escalate strikes if Iran retaliates. (TNND)
“(B)ut it will not be the biggest attack of them all, that is waiting in the wings and, when it is over, there will be very little left of the Islamic Republic of Iran!” Trump posted on social media.
Trump said the strikes were a response to Iran planting mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
A spokesperson for Iranian paramilitary forces said, “A harsh punishment awaits the aggressors, and America will regret its new attacks.”
The resumption of kinetic action follows the Trump administration’s Treasury-led sanctions blitz dubbed “Operation Economic Outcast.”
We are burying the head of the Iranian snake. The snake doesn’t know it’s dead yet, but it will stop wiggling when the sun goes down. And so, the Iranian regime, they are demised and they will figure it out,” Bessent said.
Some analysts have expressed skepticism about the scope and efficacy of this effort, especially if China doesn’t participate.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met in person with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Kyrgyzstan this week. Putin sent a not-so-subtle message to the United States as the White House tries to pressure global powers to cut economic ties with Iran.
“Russia stands in solidarity with the Iranian people. We admire your courage and resilience in the pursuit of your national interests,” Putin told Pezeshkian in front of news cameras.
Both Washington and Tehran are in a battle over the optics of who controls the Strait of Hormuz. On Monday, Trump told reporters, “we have the Strait of Hormuz in extremely good shape,” and in the past, has floated the concept of making the international waterway an American territory.
In a video address distributed to state media outlets, Iranian Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf belittled American efforts to enforce a naval blockade against Iranian ports.
“Our military forces have complete control of the strait and will not allow it to open. Wherever they see any movement from the enemy, they react with authority and precision, not allowing them to cross the strait,” Qalibaf said.
According to Kpler, there were only five crossings in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday and 10 each on Saturday and Sunday.