The United States is “not finished at all” with Iran, Donald Trump warned on Tuesday, two weeks after the resumption of hostilities which threaten to spread to the Red Sea, further affecting the world economy.
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As the Islamic Republic tightens its grip on the strategic Strait of Hormuz, its Yemeni allies, the Houthi rebels, threaten to obstruct traffic to and from the ports of Saudi Arabia, the world’s leading exporter of crude oil.
The Americans will “take care of” the Houthis if they implement this maritime blockade announced on Monday, assured the American president, whose country had already mobilized against these rebels when they disrupted maritime traffic during the war in Gaza, carrying out drone and missile attacks against ships.
Maritime security firm Vanguard Tech on Tuesday first identified two ships that turned around in the Red Sea after loading Saudi crude at the port of Yanbu, following the Houthi announcement.
If sustained, the Houthi threat would increase pressure on the Saudi economy and global markets, cutting off the kingdom’s access to its Red Sea ports, crucial to bypassing the Strait of Hormuz. With the risk, according to experts, of disrupting traffic in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, on the maritime route to the Suez Canal.
On the other side of the Arabian Peninsula, Iran is still locking down Hormuz, where it has targeted several ships in recent days.
The American army is targeting Iranian territory by expanding its strikes, which were initially confined to the region bordering the Gulf, with Tehran continuing its strikes against regional allies of the United States in response.
“If we left now, it would take Iran 20, 25 years to rebuild. But we are not done at all,” Donald Trump told reporters at the White House.
Consequence: oil prices climbed again on Tuesday, after reaching their highest level in more than a month the day before. The price of a barrel of Brent, an international benchmark, rose 2.41% to $91.37 around 10:00 a.m.
“Concerns”
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has expressed “concerns about security of supply” of oil, noting, however, that “cushioning factors” exist.
Tensions around Hormuz relaunched Iranian-American hostilities on July 7, shattering the memorandum of understanding signed in mid-June with a view to a lasting settlement of the conflict.
This was triggered by the Israeli-American offensive on Iran on February 28, before a ceasefire in April.
Iran, which believes it is facing a “total war” from Washington, was struck again during the night from Monday to Tuesday, notably in Shiraz, nearly 200 km from the Gulf, and in the province of Fars (center), according to the local agency Mehr.
Donald Trump has promised to make him “pay the price many times over” for the death of every American soldier, after the deaths of three soldiers in Jordan and Iraq in recent days.
On the Iranian side, the latest official report published on Friday lists at least 50 dead and more than 500 injured since the first skirmishes at the end of June.
“Psychological pressure”
In the last 24 hours, Jordan, Bahrain, which is home to the American Fifth Fleet, as well as Kuwait have announced that they have suffered Iranian drone and missile attacks.
“The enemy should prepare for even more decisive and powerful waves of drone and missile attacks,” warned Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, one of the most powerful armies in the Middle East.
Kuwait accused Iran of attacking power plants and water desalination sites on Monday, “for the fourth consecutive day”, and summoned the Iranian ambassador on Tuesday to protest the attack on an oil tanker crossing the Strait of Hormuz.
“What Kuwait is going through today is something we didn’t even experience during the Iraqi invasion in terms of psychological pressure and uncertainty,” Nasser al-Dhafiri, a civil servant in his forties, told AFP.
No concrete diplomatic progress is looming, despite the visit to Islamabad, mediator of the conflict, by Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeini, for discussions with senior officials including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who “urged all parties to exercise restraint”, according to his office.
Mr. Trump reiterated that the Iranians “desperately” want a meeting, but that “until they are willing to do it in a constructive way, we don’t see the point.”
Israel did not take part in the strikes, while on the Lebanese front, the lull has persisted since mid-June and President Joseph Aoun was received by Donald Trump on Tuesday.
