FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Donald Trump said the ceasefire was over earlier this week - and just days later, it appears all bets are off. Iran is once again striking back at its Gulf neighbors, who seemed unstoppable for weeks, as US strikes against Iran intensify.
And the Strait of Hormuz, apparently, has been closed again - according to Iran's Revolutionary Guard.
-Iran made a wrong choice
This latest round of escalation began on Saturday evening when another merchant ship was targeted off the coast of Oman, this time a Cypriot-flagged container ship. The Revolutionary Guard said it fired a warning shot after the vessel took an unapproved route through the Strait of Hormuz. The crew was evacuated by lifeboat and an Indian national is missing.
In response, the US attacked Iran for the third time this week. US Central Command has released images of some of the 140 strikes it says were carried out on the president's orders.
Pete Hegseth posted on X: " Iran made a bad choice. Now they pay. "
-No one is off limits
Iran had warned that any retaliation would be met with a harsh response. And this time, the missiles and drones were not limited to Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, which have borne the brunt in recent days. The United Arab Emirates, Iran's former favorite target, was attacked for the first time in nearly two months.
Residents in Abu Dhabi were awakened by emergency alerts on their mobile phones and a collective insult was shared in WhatsApp groups across the country. There was a sense of fear; the country could see a return to the attacks it endured so intensely in the first six weeks of this war.
-It seems no one is banned now.
It is worth noting that Qatar, which is now playing a key mediating role between the two sides, reported the shooting, with residents describing explosions that shook windows across Doha. And in stark contrast to the front pages of regional newspapers that reported on Oman’s bilateral talks with the Iranian foreign minister just a day earlier, they too confirmed the drone strikes on Omani territory.
Iran's new supreme leader, who has not been seen in public since succeeding his father, did not appear at this week's funeral but issued a statement vowing that Iranians would avenge his death. The message was engraved on a missile that was apparently fired in today's attacks and was dismantled by the Revolutionary Guard.
-The Strait of Hormuz was blocked again
It appears that last month's memorandum of understanding is being interpreted very differently by both sides. The agreement was supposed to see an immediate resumption of commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, but Iran appears to be attacking ships that bypass the route it controls through the northern side of the strait.
A shipping contact in the United Arab Emirates told me that the US military-controlled southern route, which runs along the Omani coastline, has made a big difference for ships trying to leave the Gulf safely. But most ships, they said, were turning off their transponders to pass through. It was unlikely to be business as usual on this critical waterway, which, in normal times, carries about a fifth of the world’s oil.
-Hopes for peace are fading
And now, it seems that this issue, which continues to be a thorn in Donald Trump's side, could destroy any hope for peace altogether. Almost halfway through this 60-day negotiation window, which was supposed to address the complex issue of Iran's nuclear program, it appears that nothing substantial has been discussed by either side.
And it is unclear what options the US president has left. At best, diplomacy is back to square one. At worst, this turns into another wave of full-scale fighting.
Lini një Përgjigje