Washington (United States) (AFP) – US President Donald Trump threatened on Monday to hit Iran “hard” after the two foes traded fire for the first time in weeks, as his Treasury secretary vowed to keep up a pressure campaign aimed at hobbling Tehran’s economy. After six months of war, the foes remain at an impasse, with Iran keeping the strategic Strait of Hormuz closed and the US persisting with a counter-blockade of Iranian ports.
On Sunday, the United States carried out strikes on an Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz, with Tehran quickly retaliating by attacking US military targets in the Middle East. The exchange raised fears of a return to major hostilities, with the US president vowing to respond. “We’re going to hit them hard,” Trump said, according to a Fox News reporter who spoke to him briefly. “There will be a response.”
The United States said it attacked Iranian rocket launchers on the island of Larak to prevent Tehran from planting mines in the key shipping lane. Iran responded with missile and drone attacks aimed at Jordan and the United Arab Emirates, claiming they targeted US forces there. However, President Masoud Pezeshkian later on Monday called for dialogue. “We continue to strive for a path of agreement and understanding, and we believe that continuing the war is neither in our interest, nor in the interest of the region,” he said at a summit in Kyrgyzstan, adding, “the solution to the existing problems is dialogue and cooperation.”
State media reported that three people were killed in the US attack Sunday on Larak, with several others wounded. Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards claimed that the ballistic missile attack targeting two US air bases in Jordan caused “heavy damage.” But Trump told Fox that all the missiles fired at US forces had been shot down, except for one that was determined not to pose a threat. Jordan’s army said it had intercepted eight missiles, without stating their origin. Iran also claimed it targeted US personnel at an air base in the UAE and shot down an American drone over Hormuz. Abu Dhabi said it intercepted a drone over the country’s waters but dismissed claims that Al Minhad Air Base had been targeted as “baseless.” The Guards reported knocking out a second US drone over Hormuz on Monday evening, and Iran’s armed forces central command reiterated a warning to its regional neighbors not to allow the US to use their territory to carry out attacks. A tanker leaving the strait reported being hit by three “unknown projectiles” just off the northeastern edge of Oman, the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency said late Monday, noting that there were no known environmental impacts or casualties.
The exchange of fire came after weeks of relative calm, with the Trump administration recently pivoting to “economic warfare.” Earlier on Monday, Trump had called Iran “a Failed Nation,” saying on social media that its military was decimated, its finances were crumbling “and their leadership is in total disarray.” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent vowed to keep up the economic pain. “We are going to continue exerting pressure, and we’ve had very good discussions here already,” Bessent told reporters at a G20 meeting in North Carolina. He said a turning point in the pressure campaign could come “within weeks or months.” Iran is exerting economic pressure of its own through its blockade on the Strait of Hormuz, which has roiled global markets and driven up prices for American voters in a closely fought midterm election year. One-fifth of the world’s oil passed through the strait before the war.
Despite traffic remaining throttled six months on, Trump has claimed the US navy has “total control” of the strait, with Washington last week announcing it had completed clearing explosives from the waterway. Iran, however, insists it is in charge of the sea lane. The Revolutionary Guards said Monday that a “rogue” oil tanker caught fire near the strait after it hit two mines while attempting to transit an “illegal route.” The US military called the claim “disinformation,” stating: “No ships have hit mines in the Strait of Hormuz.” Mediators have tried for months to broker an end to the war, but an earlier truce and memorandum of understanding fell apart. Iran recently has been trying to push the US to return to the previous deal, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi telling state TV on Monday that “the solution is completely clear and straightforward: the United States must return to its commitments.” “In that case, everything can be put back on the right track,” he said.
© 2024 AFP
