Trump's economic war on Iran faces political threats and a hefty strategic price

The United States and Iran have resumed direct military exchanges, with the US carrying out strikes on an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz and Iran retaliating with missile and drone attacks on US military targets in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. According to The Korea Times, the US attacked Iranian rocket launchers on the island of Larak to prevent Tehran from planting mines in the key shipping lane.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to hit Iran "hard" in response to the recent exchanges. He also ruled out using nuclear weapons against Iran, calling a question about it "stupid" during an Oval Office event, as reported by Gulf News. Trump argued that Iran had already been "totally defeated militarily", making any nuclear escalation unnecessary.

The conflict has had significant consequences, including surging oil prices and a toll on military personnel. Democratic Senator Mark Warner described Trump's war on Iran as a "complete failure" six months into the conflict, citing Iran's remaining access to enriched uranium, missiles, and drones, as reported by Middle East Eye. The US had targeted an Egyptian bank as part of its pressure campaign aimed at hobbling Tehran's economy, according to Haaretz.

Brief written by urgent.news from Haaretz, The Korea Times, Middle East Eye, Gulf News, Daily Times — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.