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Showing posts with label iran War. Show all posts
Showing posts with label iran War. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 07, 2026
Trump Gives Iran Deadline to Annihilation, as Allies Fear Trump Is Sick in the Head
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Steve Schmidt: Trump Has Cornered Himself on Iran
Trump was supposed to be the dealmaker par excellence. Fact is, when it comes to dealmaking, he hasn't got a clue! His abortive attempts to deal with the smarter Iranians proves it. — © Mark Alexander
Can Pope Leo Move President Trump on the Iran War? | DW News
Trump's ‘Lost His Mind’ as Iran War Panic Spirals Out of Control | Gen. Richard Shirreff
Iran Has Attacked Saudi Arabia's Jubail Petrochemical Complex, IRGC Says
REUTERS: RGC says attacks in response to strikes on Iran's Asaluyeh plants / Smoke and flames rising from the direction of Saudi's Jubail
April 7 (Reuters) - Iran on Tuesday attacked Saudi Arabia's Jubail petrochemical complex, the heart of the kingdom's downstream sector, its Revolutionary Guards said, the latest evidence of Tehran's ability to strike back in response to U.S.-Israeli attacks ahead of a U.S. deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran said the attack was in response to attacks against its Asaluyeh petrochemical plants, which are connected to its massive South Pars gas field and were reportedly hit by multiple explosions overnight.
U.S. President Donald Trump's ultimatum to Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz oil chokepoint by the end of Tuesday or face bombing of civilian infrastructure would be the biggest escalation yet of the war. Iran has warned it would target similar infrastructure in the Gulf. Hormuz's closure has sent global energy prices surging.
Iran has shown it retains the ability to strike targets in neighbouring countries and effectively shut transit through the Strait, previously a conduit for a fifth of global oil supply.
Jubail, a sprawling industrial city, houses multi-billion dollar joint ventures between state-backed oil giant Saudi Aramco and its petrochemical subsidiary SABIC, and Western energy majors.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attacks were "in response to the enemy's crimes in the aggression against (Iran's) Asaluyeh petrochemical plants," which had reportedly been hit by several explosions overnight.
It was not immediately clear which facility or facilities were hit in Saudi Arabia. Video footage verified by Reuters showed smoke and flames rising from the direction of Jubail. » | Reuters | Tuesday, April 7, 2026
April 7 (Reuters) - Iran on Tuesday attacked Saudi Arabia's Jubail petrochemical complex, the heart of the kingdom's downstream sector, its Revolutionary Guards said, the latest evidence of Tehran's ability to strike back in response to U.S.-Israeli attacks ahead of a U.S. deadline to open the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran said the attack was in response to attacks against its Asaluyeh petrochemical plants, which are connected to its massive South Pars gas field and were reportedly hit by multiple explosions overnight.
U.S. President Donald Trump's ultimatum to Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz oil chokepoint by the end of Tuesday or face bombing of civilian infrastructure would be the biggest escalation yet of the war. Iran has warned it would target similar infrastructure in the Gulf. Hormuz's closure has sent global energy prices surging.
Iran has shown it retains the ability to strike targets in neighbouring countries and effectively shut transit through the Strait, previously a conduit for a fifth of global oil supply.
Jubail, a sprawling industrial city, houses multi-billion dollar joint ventures between state-backed oil giant Saudi Aramco and its petrochemical subsidiary SABIC, and Western energy majors.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the attacks were "in response to the enemy's crimes in the aggression against (Iran's) Asaluyeh petrochemical plants," which had reportedly been hit by several explosions overnight.
It was not immediately clear which facility or facilities were hit in Saudi Arabia. Video footage verified by Reuters showed smoke and flames rising from the direction of Jubail. » | Reuters | Tuesday, April 7, 2026
Trump Warns "a Whole Civilisation Will Die Tonight" Unless Iran Reaches a Deal | BBC News
Aug 7, 2026 | US President Donald Trump has posted on Truth Social, warning: "a whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again" unless Iran reaches a deal on reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump has given Iran a deadline of 20:00 EDT Tuesday (00:00 GMT / 01:00 BST on Wednesday) to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The threat came one day after Trump said the US would destroy "every bridge" and power station in Iran if a deal isn't reached.
Meanwhile, his Vice President JD Vance - speaking at a press conference in Budapest - says that it's up to Iran to "come to the table", or the "economic situation in Iran will continue to be very, very bad".
In mainland Iran, two people have reportedly been killed after a strike on a railway bridge, while train services have been cancelled, according to reports from Iranian media.
Trump has given Iran a deadline of 20:00 EDT Tuesday (00:00 GMT / 01:00 BST on Wednesday) to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The threat came one day after Trump said the US would destroy "every bridge" and power station in Iran if a deal isn't reached.
Meanwhile, his Vice President JD Vance - speaking at a press conference in Budapest - says that it's up to Iran to "come to the table", or the "economic situation in Iran will continue to be very, very bad".
In mainland Iran, two people have reportedly been killed after a strike on a railway bridge, while train services have been cancelled, according to reports from Iranian media.
Trump: Iran’s Civilisation Will Die Tonight
THE TELEGRAPH: Donald Trump has declared that Iran’s “whole civilisation will die tonight” if it does not make a deal to end the war.
The US president said that “one of the most important moments in the history of the world” would take place this evening. His deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, or see its power plants and bridges destroyed, expires at 8pm EST (1am BST).
“A whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will. However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalised minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS?” Mr Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He added: “We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World. 47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end.”
In an apparent show of his intent, the US struck Iran’s Kharg Island, the regime’s economic lifeline which handles 90 per cent of its oil exports.
Israel, meanwhile, killed at least two people in strikes on a railway bridge in the city of Kashan in Isfahan province. » | Robert White. Iona Cleave | Tuesday, April 7, 2026
The rantings of a MADMAN! Nobody can help Trump now, so he should be sectioned and locked up for good. The man DISGUSTS me as he does all decent people. — © Mark Alexander
Hegseth Likens Easter Rescue of U.S. Airman to Resurrection of Jesus Christ
THE NEW YORK TIMES: President Trump also asserted that God supports the American war against Iran “because God is good, and God wants to see people taken care of.”
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday likened the rescue on Easter Sunday of a missing American airman shot down over Iran to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Minutes later, speaking at the same news conference describing the military operation, President Trump asserted that God supports the Israeli-U.S. war against Iran, which has killed thousands, including many civilians. “Because God is good,” he said, “and God wants to see people taken care of.”
Mr. Trump continued: “God doesn’t like what’s happening. I don’t like what’s happening. Everyone says I enjoy it. I don’t enjoy this.”
“I don’t like seeing people get killed,” he said.
In his account of the rescue operation, Mr. Hegseth drew parallels between the airman’s ordeal and the account of Christ’s death and Resurrection given in the Bible.
The F-15E fighter jet, he noted, was “shot down on a Friday — Good Friday.” That is the day Jesus was crucified.
After the airman bailed out over Iran, he hid, Mr. Hegseth said, “in a cave, a crevice, all of Saturday,” reminiscent of the tomb cut into a rock in which Jesus was buried.
Then, he said, the airman was rescued on the day Christians celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus — “flown out of Iran as the sun was rising on Easter Sunday.”
,br /> “A pilot reborn, all home and accounted for, a nation rejoicing,” the defense secretary said. “God is good.” » | Chris Cameron | Reporting from Washington | Monday, April 6, 2026
One is SPEECHLESS! — © Mark Alexander
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday likened the rescue on Easter Sunday of a missing American airman shot down over Iran to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Minutes later, speaking at the same news conference describing the military operation, President Trump asserted that God supports the Israeli-U.S. war against Iran, which has killed thousands, including many civilians. “Because God is good,” he said, “and God wants to see people taken care of.”
Mr. Trump continued: “God doesn’t like what’s happening. I don’t like what’s happening. Everyone says I enjoy it. I don’t enjoy this.”
“I don’t like seeing people get killed,” he said.
In his account of the rescue operation, Mr. Hegseth drew parallels between the airman’s ordeal and the account of Christ’s death and Resurrection given in the Bible.
The F-15E fighter jet, he noted, was “shot down on a Friday — Good Friday.” That is the day Jesus was crucified.
After the airman bailed out over Iran, he hid, Mr. Hegseth said, “in a cave, a crevice, all of Saturday,” reminiscent of the tomb cut into a rock in which Jesus was buried.
Then, he said, the airman was rescued on the day Christians celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus — “flown out of Iran as the sun was rising on Easter Sunday.”
,br /> “A pilot reborn, all home and accounted for, a nation rejoicing,” the defense secretary said. “God is good.” » | Chris Cameron | Reporting from Washington | Monday, April 6, 2026
One is SPEECHLESS! — © Mark Alexander
The Guardian View on Trump’s Apocalyptic Threats: A Sign Not of Strength, But of Moral and Strategic Weakness
THE GUARDIAN — EDITORIAL: An expletive-ridden post on social media shamed the office of the US president. Its substantive message, if acted on, would be a war crime
Article 52 of the first additional protocol to the Geneva conventions prohibits attacks on civilian targets. It is on those grounds that the international criminal court has issued arrest warrants for Russian military officers and officials responsible for attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Such assaults, and the missiles rained on Ukrainian cities and towns in order to terrify and demoralise, constitute war crimes. Exactly the same would apply to the United States, should Donald Trump’s threats to bomb Iran back to the “stone age” this week be carried out.
Such basic tenets of international law bear repeating at a time when Mr Trump and his defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, appear to speak as if from within a bloodthirsty fever dream. Glorying repulsively in his capacity to order death and destruction from the Pentagon, Mr Hegseth, an Evangelical Christian, has presented Operation Epic Fury as a 21st-century crusade “to break the teeth of the ungodly”. On social media at the weekend, Mr Trump topped that by unleashing a stream of expletive-ridden abuse, ranting that unless Iran reopens the strait of Hormuz to shipping, “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day … Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell”. » | Editorial | Monday, April 6, 2026
Article 52 of the first additional protocol to the Geneva conventions prohibits attacks on civilian targets. It is on those grounds that the international criminal court has issued arrest warrants for Russian military officers and officials responsible for attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Such assaults, and the missiles rained on Ukrainian cities and towns in order to terrify and demoralise, constitute war crimes. Exactly the same would apply to the United States, should Donald Trump’s threats to bomb Iran back to the “stone age” this week be carried out.
Such basic tenets of international law bear repeating at a time when Mr Trump and his defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, appear to speak as if from within a bloodthirsty fever dream. Glorying repulsively in his capacity to order death and destruction from the Pentagon, Mr Hegseth, an Evangelical Christian, has presented Operation Epic Fury as a 21st-century crusade “to break the teeth of the ungodly”. On social media at the weekend, Mr Trump topped that by unleashing a stream of expletive-ridden abuse, ranting that unless Iran reopens the strait of Hormuz to shipping, “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day … Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell”. » | Editorial | Monday, April 6, 2026
The US Is Climbing an Endless Ladder of Escalation | Steve Erlanger
Apr 7, 2026 | "Strategically, America's stuck. We don't know how the war is going to end."
Donald Trump has "the wrong idea" of what military power on its own can achieve, says chief diplomatic correspondent in Europe for the New York Times Steven Erlanger.
Donald Trump has "the wrong idea" of what military power on its own can achieve, says chief diplomatic correspondent in Europe for the New York Times Steven Erlanger.
Trump Says Iran Proposal Isn’t Enough to Stop Attacks on Bridges and Power Plants
THE NEW YORK TIMES: President Trump has told Iran it must open the Strait of Hormuz by 8 p.m. Tuesday or face the consequences, although he has delayed previous deadlines.
President Trump said on Monday that a cease-fire proposal put forth by mediators between the United States and Iran was a “significant step,” but he warned that it was “not good enough” as his deadline of Tuesday evening for a deal approached.
Iran, for its part, rejected any proposal for a cease-fire, mandating that any peace plan include a complete end of hostilities. Diplomatic talks coordinated by Pakistan and other regional countries were continuing, officials said, even as there appeared to be little agreement on what any cessation of hostilities would look like.
If Iran does not agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern time, Mr. Trump has threatened to launch a massive attack targeting bridges, power plants and other civilian facilities that would, in his words, send Iran “back to the Stone Ages.” But the president has also extended self-imposed deadlines in recent weeks, and diplomats around the world were asking whether Mr. Trump would find an off-ramp again or if he would follow through this time with what could be a gigantic conflagration.
“We have a plan, because of the power of our military, where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night, where every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding and never to be used again,” Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday afternoon. “I mean complete demolition by 12 o’clock.” » | Tyler Pager and Erika Solomon | Tyler Pager is a White House correspondent and reported from Washington. Erika Solomon is the Iran and Iraq bureau chief and reported from Cairo. | Monday, April 6, 2026
President Trump said on Monday that a cease-fire proposal put forth by mediators between the United States and Iran was a “significant step,” but he warned that it was “not good enough” as his deadline of Tuesday evening for a deal approached.
Iran, for its part, rejected any proposal for a cease-fire, mandating that any peace plan include a complete end of hostilities. Diplomatic talks coordinated by Pakistan and other regional countries were continuing, officials said, even as there appeared to be little agreement on what any cessation of hostilities would look like.
If Iran does not agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday at 8 p.m. Eastern time, Mr. Trump has threatened to launch a massive attack targeting bridges, power plants and other civilian facilities that would, in his words, send Iran “back to the Stone Ages.” But the president has also extended self-imposed deadlines in recent weeks, and diplomats around the world were asking whether Mr. Trump would find an off-ramp again or if he would follow through this time with what could be a gigantic conflagration.
“We have a plan, because of the power of our military, where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night, where every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding and never to be used again,” Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday afternoon. “I mean complete demolition by 12 o’clock.” » | Tyler Pager and Erika Solomon | Tyler Pager is a White House correspondent and reported from Washington. Erika Solomon is the Iran and Iraq bureau chief and reported from Cairo. | Monday, April 6, 2026
Monday, April 06, 2026
Iran’s 10-Point Proposal Demands an End to Attacks and Sanctions
THE NEW YORK TIMES: As President Trump’s deadline for new attacks loomed, Iran conveyed its conditions through Pakistani intermediaries.
Iran on Monday delivered a 10-point proposal to end its war with the United States and Israel, according to Iranian state media. The plan was conveyed by Pakistan, which has been acting as a primary intermediary in the conflict, but appeared unlikely to resolve major questions ahead of President Trump’s Tuesday evening deadline for new attacks on Iran.
Two senior Iranian officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations, said the proposal included a guarantee that Iran would not be attacked again, an end to Israeli strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon and the lifting of all sanctions.
In return, Iran would lift its de facto blockade of the key shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran would also impose a fee of roughly $2 million per ship that it would split with Oman, which sits across the strait. Iran would use its share of the proceeds to reconstruct infrastructure destroyed by American and Israeli attacks, rather than demand direct compensation, according to the plan. » | Max Bearak, Farnaz Fassihi, Shirin Hakim and Erika Solomon | Monday, April 6, 2026
Iran on Monday delivered a 10-point proposal to end its war with the United States and Israel, according to Iranian state media. The plan was conveyed by Pakistan, which has been acting as a primary intermediary in the conflict, but appeared unlikely to resolve major questions ahead of President Trump’s Tuesday evening deadline for new attacks on Iran.
Two senior Iranian officials, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive negotiations, said the proposal included a guarantee that Iran would not be attacked again, an end to Israeli strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon and the lifting of all sanctions.
In return, Iran would lift its de facto blockade of the key shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran would also impose a fee of roughly $2 million per ship that it would split with Oman, which sits across the strait. Iran would use its share of the proceeds to reconstruct infrastructure destroyed by American and Israeli attacks, rather than demand direct compensation, according to the plan. » | Max Bearak, Farnaz Fassihi, Shirin Hakim and Erika Solomon | Monday, April 6, 2026
Trump Renews Threat of Attacks on Bridges and Power Plants
THE NEW YORK TIMES: President Trump presented details of a daring rescue of an American airman in cinematic terms. Mr. Trump and Iran sent mixed messages about escalating the war and diplomacy to end it ahead of his Tuesday deadline.
President Trump on Monday escalated his threats to devastate Iran if it does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz, even as he again floated the possibility that diplomacy may yet avert steps to prolong and deepen the war.
“We have a plan, because of the power of our military, where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night, where every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding and never to be used again,” Mr. Trump said at a White House news conference. If the attacks take place, he added, “It will take them 100 years to rebuild.”
Mr. Trump gave a laudatory depiction of the rescue of a missing American airman shot down over Iran. The mission involved 155 aircraft and hundreds of people, he said, though “a lot of it was subterfuge” designed to lead Iranian forces away from the aviator. He also revealed that the plane, a U.S. Air Force F-15E, had been downed by a single shoulder-fired missile.
At an earlier White House appearance, Mr. Trump added to the conflicting signals that have characterized the conflict, now in its second month, by saying that he wanted the United States to take Iran’s oil and profit from it. That would imply a long-term and risky U.S. presence in the region, but “unfortunately the American people would like to see us come home.”
His remarks to reporters came after Iran made a new 10-point peace proposal, and after Mr. Trump renewed his threat to bomb Iranian civilian infrastructure if Tehran does not allow shipping to pass freely through the critical strait, a conduit for a significant portion of the world’s crude oil and natural gas.
“It’s a significant proposal,” Mr. Trump said of the Iranian proposal, which was made through Pakistani mediators. “It’s a significant step. It’s not good enough. But it’s a very significant step.”
Later he said, “I can tell you that we have an active, willing participant on the other side. They would like to make a deal.”
The full contents of the Iranian plan were not made public, but diplomatic efforts have yielded little so far, despite Mr. Trump’s repeated claims of progress, with each side making demands that the other has dismissed as unacceptable. Iranian and U.S. officials have communicated mostly through intermediaries, like Pakistan.
“If it were up to me, I’d take the oil,” Mr. Trump said of Iran. “I’d keep the oil and we’d make plenty of money. And I would also take care of the people of Iran much better than they’ve been taken care of. It’s been horrible.” Iran War Live Updates » | Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Erika Solomon and Richard Pérez-Peña | Monday, April 6, 2026
Watch and listen to the NYT video of Trump rambling here.
If this criminal goes ahead with his plan to destroy Iran, will Americans EVER be able to get over their SHAME and their country’s SHAMEFUL and BARBARIC behaviour? After all, it was IRRESPONSIBLE Americans who put this DISGUSTING MAN into office. — © Mark Alexander
President Trump on Monday escalated his threats to devastate Iran if it does not reopen the Strait of Hormuz, even as he again floated the possibility that diplomacy may yet avert steps to prolong and deepen the war.
“We have a plan, because of the power of our military, where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night, where every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding and never to be used again,” Mr. Trump said at a White House news conference. If the attacks take place, he added, “It will take them 100 years to rebuild.”
Mr. Trump gave a laudatory depiction of the rescue of a missing American airman shot down over Iran. The mission involved 155 aircraft and hundreds of people, he said, though “a lot of it was subterfuge” designed to lead Iranian forces away from the aviator. He also revealed that the plane, a U.S. Air Force F-15E, had been downed by a single shoulder-fired missile.
At an earlier White House appearance, Mr. Trump added to the conflicting signals that have characterized the conflict, now in its second month, by saying that he wanted the United States to take Iran’s oil and profit from it. That would imply a long-term and risky U.S. presence in the region, but “unfortunately the American people would like to see us come home.”
His remarks to reporters came after Iran made a new 10-point peace proposal, and after Mr. Trump renewed his threat to bomb Iranian civilian infrastructure if Tehran does not allow shipping to pass freely through the critical strait, a conduit for a significant portion of the world’s crude oil and natural gas.
“It’s a significant proposal,” Mr. Trump said of the Iranian proposal, which was made through Pakistani mediators. “It’s a significant step. It’s not good enough. But it’s a very significant step.”
Later he said, “I can tell you that we have an active, willing participant on the other side. They would like to make a deal.”
The full contents of the Iranian plan were not made public, but diplomatic efforts have yielded little so far, despite Mr. Trump’s repeated claims of progress, with each side making demands that the other has dismissed as unacceptable. Iranian and U.S. officials have communicated mostly through intermediaries, like Pakistan.
“If it were up to me, I’d take the oil,” Mr. Trump said of Iran. “I’d keep the oil and we’d make plenty of money. And I would also take care of the people of Iran much better than they’ve been taken care of. It’s been horrible.” Iran War Live Updates » | Zolan Kanno-Youngs, Erika Solomon and Richard Pérez-Peña | Monday, April 6, 2026
Watch and listen to the NYT video of Trump rambling here.
If this criminal goes ahead with his plan to destroy Iran, will Americans EVER be able to get over their SHAME and their country’s SHAMEFUL and BARBARIC behaviour? After all, it was IRRESPONSIBLE Americans who put this DISGUSTING MAN into office. — © Mark Alexander
Trump Won’t Strike Iran’s Energy Infrastructure as Fallout Would Be ‘Excessively Dangerous’
Apr 6, 2026 | “I just cannot see Donald Trump approving a mass bombing of Iran’s oil and gas infrastructure.”
The Times’s former defence editor Michael Evans says it would be “excessively dangerous” for the US president to strike Iran’s energy infrastructure.
The Times’s former defence editor Michael Evans says it would be “excessively dangerous” for the US president to strike Iran’s energy infrastructure.
The War Is Turning Iran Into a Major World Power
THE NEW YORK TIMES — OPINION: In recent years, the conventional geopolitical wisdom has been that the world order was moving toward three centers of power: the United States, China and Russia. That view assumed that power derived primarily from economic scale and military capability.
That assumption no longer holds. A fourth center of global power is quickly emerging — Iran — that does not rival those three nations economically or militarily. Instead, its newfound power derives from its control over the most important energy choke point in the global economy, the Strait of Hormuz.
The strait had long been an international waterway through which ships from all countries could travel. But the joint military campaign that the United States and Israel began waging against Iran this year has prompted Iran to create a selective military blockade of the strait.
Roughly one-fifth of the world’s supply of oil and liquefied natural gas moves through the strait. There are no real alternatives to these supply routes in the near term. If Iranian control over the strait persists for months or years, as I believe it may, it will drastically reshape the global order to the detriment of the United States.
Many analysts believe that Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz is only temporary. A widespread expectation is that U.S. and allied naval forces will soon stabilize the situation and that oil flows will resume along familiar lines.
That expectation is flawed. It assumes that to continue to control the strait, Iran must physically close it off. But as we have already seen, you can control the strait without closing it. Today, the strait remains open to tankers. Traffic has dropped by over 90 percent since the war began, though, not because Iran has been sinking every vessel that entered the strait, but because, given the credible threat of an attack, insurers withdrew or repriced war-risk coverage. Hitting a cargo ship every few days was more than enough to make the risk unacceptable. » | A NYT GUEST ESSAY by Robert A. Pape | Dr. Pape is a professor of political science at the University of Chicago who studies military strategy and international security. | Monday, April 6, 2026
That assumption no longer holds. A fourth center of global power is quickly emerging — Iran — that does not rival those three nations economically or militarily. Instead, its newfound power derives from its control over the most important energy choke point in the global economy, the Strait of Hormuz.
The strait had long been an international waterway through which ships from all countries could travel. But the joint military campaign that the United States and Israel began waging against Iran this year has prompted Iran to create a selective military blockade of the strait.
Roughly one-fifth of the world’s supply of oil and liquefied natural gas moves through the strait. There are no real alternatives to these supply routes in the near term. If Iranian control over the strait persists for months or years, as I believe it may, it will drastically reshape the global order to the detriment of the United States.
Many analysts believe that Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz is only temporary. A widespread expectation is that U.S. and allied naval forces will soon stabilize the situation and that oil flows will resume along familiar lines.
That expectation is flawed. It assumes that to continue to control the strait, Iran must physically close it off. But as we have already seen, you can control the strait without closing it. Today, the strait remains open to tankers. Traffic has dropped by over 90 percent since the war began, though, not because Iran has been sinking every vessel that entered the strait, but because, given the credible threat of an attack, insurers withdrew or repriced war-risk coverage. Hitting a cargo ship every few days was more than enough to make the risk unacceptable. » | A NYT GUEST ESSAY by Robert A. Pape | Dr. Pape is a professor of political science at the University of Chicago who studies military strategy and international security. | Monday, April 6, 2026
Trump’s Iran Threat ‘Not the Messaging from a Sane Individual’ | Greg Bagwell
Apr 5, 2026 | “It’s not the statement of someone that seems to be in control of the situation.”
Donald Trump’s threats toward Iran are “not the messaging from a sane individual,” as the dramatic rescue of a downed US airman shows Iran still retains the “capability to shoot down aircraft,” says former RAF Air Marshal Greg Bagwell.
Donald Trump’s threats toward Iran are “not the messaging from a sane individual,” as the dramatic rescue of a downed US airman shows Iran still retains the “capability to shoot down aircraft,” says former RAF Air Marshal Greg Bagwell.
Trump Revels in Threats to Commit War Crimes in Iran
THE NEW YORK TIMES: The president said he would bomb Iran “back to the Stone Ages.” Until this administration, American leaders had insisted they were trying to follow international law in war.
Power plants, desalination stations, oil wells, roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
They are the foundations of civilian life in Iran, and their destruction by American and Israeli forces would cause widespread suffering among the country’s 93 million people — and in most cases would be considered a war crime under international law.
Yet President Trump has repeatedly threatened to do exactly that, with the aim of sending Iran “back to the Stone Ages, where they belong,” as he put it in a speech on Wednesday.
On Easter weekend, he wrote online that “all Hell will reign down” on the Iranians unless they met a deadline of Monday to make concessions or open up the Strait of Hormuz to ship traffic, adding, “Glory be to GOD!”
The president was emphatic about the targets in a follow-up post: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell — JUST WATCH. Praise be to Allah.”
He is talking not just about civilian sites with military uses, which can be considered legitimate targets. In his speech on Wednesday, he said he would “hit each and every one” of the country’s power plants, “probably simultaneously.” The next day, after the American military destroyed a large bridge near Tehran, Iran’s capital, he exulted on social media: “Much more to follow!” At least 13 civilians were killed and 95 injured, an Iranian official said. » | Edward Wong | Edward Wong reports on U.S. foreign policy from Washington after having covered China and the Iraq war during 13 years overseas. | Sunday, April 5, 2026
Power plants, desalination stations, oil wells, roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
They are the foundations of civilian life in Iran, and their destruction by American and Israeli forces would cause widespread suffering among the country’s 93 million people — and in most cases would be considered a war crime under international law.
Yet President Trump has repeatedly threatened to do exactly that, with the aim of sending Iran “back to the Stone Ages, where they belong,” as he put it in a speech on Wednesday.
On Easter weekend, he wrote online that “all Hell will reign down” on the Iranians unless they met a deadline of Monday to make concessions or open up the Strait of Hormuz to ship traffic, adding, “Glory be to GOD!”
The president was emphatic about the targets in a follow-up post: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell — JUST WATCH. Praise be to Allah.”
He is talking not just about civilian sites with military uses, which can be considered legitimate targets. In his speech on Wednesday, he said he would “hit each and every one” of the country’s power plants, “probably simultaneously.” The next day, after the American military destroyed a large bridge near Tehran, Iran’s capital, he exulted on social media: “Much more to follow!” At least 13 civilians were killed and 95 injured, an Iranian official said. » | Edward Wong | Edward Wong reports on U.S. foreign policy from Washington after having covered China and the Iraq war during 13 years overseas. | Sunday, April 5, 2026
Sunday, April 05, 2026
Exclusive Interview: Iran’s Baghaei Warns of Swift Retaliation against US after Trump Threats
Trump Issues a New Warning Hours after a Second US Airman Is Rescued from Inside Iran | BBC News
Apr 5, 2026 | The US President has threatened to target civilian infrastructure inside Iran, if a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is not reached with Tehran.
The very strongly worded social media post followed new details of a daring US mission to rescue a second US airman, stranded for around 48-hours inside Iran after a US fighter jet was shot down.
As rhetoric around the Strait of Hormuz escalates, our Senior International Correspondent reports from the Gulf of Oman on what a potential US operation there could look like.
Trump and Netanyahu are the "crazy bastards", not the Iranians! The Iranians are just defending themselves against two madmen. — © Mark Alexander
The very strongly worded social media post followed new details of a daring US mission to rescue a second US airman, stranded for around 48-hours inside Iran after a US fighter jet was shot down.
As rhetoric around the Strait of Hormuz escalates, our Senior International Correspondent reports from the Gulf of Oman on what a potential US operation there could look like.
Trump and Netanyahu are the "crazy bastards", not the Iranians! The Iranians are just defending themselves against two madmen. — © Mark Alexander
'Open the F—in' Strait' — Trump Fires Off a Profanity-laden Social Media Attack on Iran | DW News
Apr 5, 2026 | US President Donald Trump on Sunday heightened tensions with Iran, renewing a threat to strike key infrastructure if Tehran does not lift its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, in an expletive laden post on his Truth Social platform.
Trump's references to 'Power Plant Day' and 'Bridge Day' as imminent actions were widely interpreted as threats against civilian infrastructure, including electrical grids and transportation networks. Under the Geneva Conventions, deliberately targeting civilian objects — such as power plants, bridges, or water systems not being used for military purposes — constitutes a war crime.
Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards have claimed responsibility for attacks on petrochemical plants in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain. The IRGC has warned that it will intensify its attacks on US economic interests in the region if Washington strikes additional civilian targets.
Trump's references to 'Power Plant Day' and 'Bridge Day' as imminent actions were widely interpreted as threats against civilian infrastructure, including electrical grids and transportation networks. Under the Geneva Conventions, deliberately targeting civilian objects — such as power plants, bridges, or water systems not being used for military purposes — constitutes a war crime.
Meanwhile, Iran's Revolutionary Guards have claimed responsibility for attacks on petrochemical plants in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain. The IRGC has warned that it will intensify its attacks on US economic interests in the region if Washington strikes additional civilian targets.
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