WAR Iran/ US/mideast war thread - 2/28/26 Open Hostilities (Thread for Off Topic discussion started, see post #13,751, page 344)
- Thread starter danielboon
- Start date
jward
passin' thru
Steve Lookner reposted
U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. 5th Fleet
@US5thFleet
6h
The U.S. Navy suspended the active search for a Sailor assigned to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 5 embarked aboard aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), effective 3:00p.m. AST on July 5, 2026. The Sailor was reported missing July 1st, after an MH-60S helicopter went down in the Arabian Sea. The efforts concluded following an extensive search by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility. The Sailor’s name is being withheld until at least 24 hours after next-of-kin notification is complete in accordance with Navy policy.
For more than 102 hours, an extensive and coordinated search and rescue effort spanning over 14,000 square miles was conducted. The efforts brought together the USS George H.W. Bush carrier’s HSC 5 and Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron (HSM) 46, the fixed wing aircraft of Carrier Air Wings (CVW) 7 and 9, aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln’s (CVN 72) helicopter squadrons HSC 14 and HSM 71, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Ross (DDG 71), USS Donald Cook (DDG 75), USS Higgins (DDG 76), USS Mason (DDG 87), and USS John Finn (DDG 113) with HSM 51, two P-8 Poseidon squadrons, and multiple U.S. Air Force aircraft.
jward
passin' thru
Open Source Intel
@Osint613
10m
Egypt is renewing its push for the technocratic committee plan and the disarmament of Hamas.
The Saudi paper Al-Sharq al-Awsat reports, citing Hamas sources with no confirmation elsewhere, that Hamas leadership is moving toward dissolving the "Committee to Monitor Government Activities," which acts as its de facto government in Gaza.
The dissolution could come as part of an initiative to pave the way for a technocratic committee, headed by Ali Sha'ath, to manage the Strip.
Should Hamas announce it, the move would likely be declarative only. The group's real power centers in Gaza remain in its hands, with no genuine intent to abandon its "resistance" against Israel.
Hamas and other Palestinian factions are set to meet again in Cairo within two days to bridge gaps on the second phase of the fragile ceasefire.
@Osint613
10m
Egypt is renewing its push for the technocratic committee plan and the disarmament of Hamas.
The Saudi paper Al-Sharq al-Awsat reports, citing Hamas sources with no confirmation elsewhere, that Hamas leadership is moving toward dissolving the "Committee to Monitor Government Activities," which acts as its de facto government in Gaza.
The dissolution could come as part of an initiative to pave the way for a technocratic committee, headed by Ali Sha'ath, to manage the Strip.
Should Hamas announce it, the move would likely be declarative only. The group's real power centers in Gaza remain in its hands, with no genuine intent to abandon its "resistance" against Israel.
Hamas and other Palestinian factions are set to meet again in Cairo within two days to bridge gaps on the second phase of the fragile ceasefire.
jward
passin' thru
Sal Mercogliano (WGOW Shipping) 
reposted
Stephen Stapczynski
@SStapczynski
4h
Oil and gas shipping along a US-protected corridor in the Strait of Hormuz showed signs of recovering Sunday
At least 6 tankers were navigating on a route close to Oman’s coast. This comes after several ships were seen u-turning along the Omani route in earlier days
View: https://twitter.com/SStapczynski/status/2073796649185669192?s=20
repostedStephen Stapczynski
@SStapczynski
4h
Oil and gas shipping along a US-protected corridor in the Strait of Hormuz showed signs of recovering Sunday
At least 6 tankers were navigating on a route close to Oman’s coast. This comes after several ships were seen u-turning along the Omani route in earlier days
View: https://twitter.com/SStapczynski/status/2073796649185669192?s=20
jward
passin' thru
Babak Taghvaee - The Crisis Watch
@BabakTaghvaee1
27m
Today, Mohammad Mokhber, one of the officials of Iran's Islamic regime, threatened the President of the United States and, in doing so, has turned himself into a target. He said that those who killed his dictator, Ali Khamenei, would not die of natural causes, implying that they should be killed. But he does not realize that by making such a threat, he is going to have himself killed.
@BabakTaghvaee1
27m
Today, Mohammad Mokhber, one of the officials of Iran's Islamic regime, threatened the President of the United States and, in doing so, has turned himself into a target. He said that those who killed his dictator, Ali Khamenei, would not die of natural causes, implying that they should be killed. But he does not realize that by making such a threat, he is going to have himself killed.
jward
passin' thru
Babak Taghvaee - The Crisis Watch
@BabakTaghvaee1
40m
Video recorded in Tehran, the capital city of Iran today, shows Reza Gholami Aram, one of the snipers of the special police units of Iran’s Islamic regime protecting regime supporters during the funeral of dictator Ali Khamenei. These ruthless snipers massacred thousands of Iranian protesters in January 2026, including children. They are among the most ruthless terrorists of the Islamic regime.
During the Operation Lion’s Roar, my friends eliminated some of these terrorists by bombing their bases and hideouts. But this piece of shit got away.
rt 22
View: https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee1/status/2073856027183718461?s=20
@BabakTaghvaee1
40m
Video recorded in Tehran, the capital city of Iran today, shows Reza Gholami Aram, one of the snipers of the special police units of Iran’s Islamic regime protecting regime supporters during the funeral of dictator Ali Khamenei. These ruthless snipers massacred thousands of Iranian protesters in January 2026, including children. They are among the most ruthless terrorists of the Islamic regime.
During the Operation Lion’s Roar, my friends eliminated some of these terrorists by bombing their bases and hideouts. But this piece of shit got away.
rt 22
View: https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee1/status/2073856027183718461?s=20
jward
passin' thru
Raylan Givens
@JewishWarrior13
1h
Al-Sharq Al-Awsat reports: Hamas is likely to announce the dissolution of its government in the Gaza Strip in the coming days in order to allow the "Committee for Managing the Strip," which was established under the Trump peace plan, to begin its work. Even if Hamas announces the dissolution of its government, it is largely symbolic, and it will continue to hold power behind the scenes. Hamas is trying to exert international pressure on Israel to avoid a military operation and to promote a withdrawal from various areas in the Strip.
@JewishWarrior13
1h
Al-Sharq Al-Awsat reports: Hamas is likely to announce the dissolution of its government in the Gaza Strip in the coming days in order to allow the "Committee for Managing the Strip," which was established under the Trump peace plan, to begin its work. Even if Hamas announces the dissolution of its government, it is largely symbolic, and it will continue to hold power behind the scenes. Hamas is trying to exert international pressure on Israel to avoid a military operation and to promote a withdrawal from various areas in the Strip.
jward
passin' thru
Mossad Commentary
@MOSSADil
IRGC QUDS FORCE UNIT LINKED TO ALLEGED ASSASSINATION PLOTS AGAINST U.S. OFFICIALS
According to C14, new intelligence reports claim Iran’s IRGC Quds Force has established a unit called “Mukhtar,” allegedly working with Mexican cartels and members of the Iranian diaspora to plan assassinations targeting President Trump and other U.S. officials.
I wonder if they also get those banger ball caps.
@MOSSADil
IRGC QUDS FORCE UNIT LINKED TO ALLEGED ASSASSINATION PLOTS AGAINST U.S. OFFICIALS
According to C14, new intelligence reports claim Iran’s IRGC Quds Force has established a unit called “Mukhtar,” allegedly working with Mexican cartels and members of the Iranian diaspora to plan assassinations targeting President Trump and other U.S. officials.
I wonder if they also get those banger ball caps.
jward
passin' thru
C14 News | EN
@c14english
2h
Iran's Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, was spotted wearing a symbol of vengeance for Qasem Soleimani and Ayatollah Khamenei. This aggressive symbolic gesture implies he may now operate under a suicidal terrorist directive, severely endangering the safety of the upcoming US delegation meetings.
@c14english
2h
Iran's Parliament Speaker and chief negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, was spotted wearing a symbol of vengeance for Qasem Soleimani and Ayatollah Khamenei. This aggressive symbolic gesture implies he may now operate under a suicidal terrorist directive, severely endangering the safety of the upcoming US delegation meetings.
day late
money? whats that?
At this time, Tousi is reporting disregard any protests during the funeral. Yeah, sure, nobody complains about stomping on Trumps picture. Nothing against the gov. though. Of course there are a few and a few arrests. Don’t get excited. These are supporters of the IRGC protesting against members of the gov. who want negotiations with the U.S. They may have been arrested but they will likely be back on the street before the paperwork is done.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
EndGameWW3 @EndGameWW3. I can't wrap my head around this statement. If Trump were genuinely concerned that Turkey would join the war and help Iran, then Turkey is, by all definitions, an enemy country. So why in the world would you want to give them F-35s?!
The Hormuz Letter (@HormuzLetter) on X
BREAKING: The Qatari LNG tanker Al Rekayyat, attacked and severely damaged by Iran this morning, is at high risk of exploding due to a massive fire in its engine room, marking the first LNG ship struck in the war and would be the first laden explosion since the war began, per
U.S.-Iran Updates: Tankers hit in Strait of Hormuz as Tehran threatens to ditch talks over Trump's threats
s many as 3 tankers come under attack in the Strait of Hormuz as the U.S. and Iran continue exchanging threats with peace talks on hold.
www.cbsnews.com
U.S.-Iran Updates: Tankers hit in Strait of Hormuz as Tehran threatens to ditch talks over Trump's threats
ByDuarte Dias,
Tucker Reals
Updated on: July 7, 2026 / 10:36 AM EDT / CBS News
Add CBS News on Google
What to know about the Iran war today:
- At least three tankers trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz via a route Iran has warned ships against using appeared to come under attack Tuesday. Iran did not claim any of the attacks, but its state TV network said at least one vessel ignored warnings from Iranian forces.
- Iran's top diplomat said Tuesday that Tehran would not resume negotiations if U.S. threats continue, after President Trump said the U.S. would "finish the job" if a peace deal isn't reached. The talks are paused while Iran holds a week-long funeral for former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a strike on the first day of the war.
- NATO leaders start a two-day summit in Turkey on Tuesday, where President Trump is expected to pressure allies to step up their defense spending. Mr. Trump has repeatedly voiced frustration over U.S. allies' refusal to join the war on Iran launched jointly by the U.S. and Israel on Feb. 28.
Gulf Cooperation Council leader condemns "brutal Iranian attack on the Qatari tanker"
The head of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a regional bloc made up of six Persian Gulf states, condemned the "brutal Iranian attack on the Qatari tanker 'Al-Rukayyat,'" which he said had endangered the ship's crew.GCC Secretary-General Jassim Mohammed Al-Budaiwi called the strike on the liquid natural gas (LNG) tanker off Oman's coast "a dangerous escalation that threatens the security and stability of the region."
In his statement, Al-Budaiwi called on the international community to adopt a "firm and deterrent stance against these repeated Iranian attacks in order to safeguard regional and international peace and security and prevent the recurrence of such hostile acts that threaten the stability of the region."
He added that the GCC stood "united with the State of Qatar and expressed its full solidarity with all measures" taken in response by Doha.
By Khaled Wassef, Tucker Reals
Report of possible third ship coming under attack in Strait of Hormuz
The U.K. navy's Maritime Trade Operations center said it received "a report of a further incident involving a tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz," in what appeared to be a possible third attack on a commercial vessel by Iran Tuesday.UKMTO said the tanker, which it did not identify, was hit by a drone "and has sustained minor structural damage," though it had reported no casualties or environmental impact and said it was continuing to its next port of call.
The agency earlier reported a projectile impacting a Qatari liquid natural gas tanker, identified as the Al-Rekayat, as it transited the Strait of Hormuz along a southern route close to Oman's coast that Iranian authorities have warned vessels not to use. Qatar's government condemned the attack and accused Iran of carrying it out.
The Reuters news agency, meanwhile, said the Saudi-flagged crude oil supertanker Wedyan was damaged in or near the Strait of Hormuz, also close to Oman's coast, by an Iranian fired missile on Tuesday.
Reuters said the attack on the Al-Rekayat caused a fire in the ship's engine room, and there were concerns that it could lead to an explosion.
By Tucker Reals
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Open Source Intel @Osint613
Sen. Lindsey Graham to i24NEWS: "We will oppose the F-35 deal."
Congress fears Russia could learn about the advanced fighter jet through Turkey.
Sen. Lindsey Graham to i24NEWS: "We will oppose the F-35 deal."
Congress fears Russia could learn about the advanced fighter jet through Turkey.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
EndGameWW3 @EndGameWW3 IRAN’S ACTIONS IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ WERE WHOLLY UNACCEPTABLE TO THE UNITED STATES AND WILL BE MET WITH CONSEQUENCES -OFFICIAL
danielboon
TB Fanatic
EndGameWW3 @EndGameWW3 Iranian media: Sound of 7 explosions heard in the Sirik area in southern Iran.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
OSINTdefender @sentdefender Multiple explosions in the last few minutes on Qeshm Island in Southern Iran.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Open Source Intel @Osint613
BREAKING: U.S. military says they have launched a series of powerful strikes on Iran.
Contributed by @AZ_Intel_.
BREAKING: U.S. military says they have launched a series of powerful strikes on Iran.
Contributed by @AZ_Intel_.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
EndGameWW3 @EndGameWW3
Update: Fars News Agency: Echoes of 10 explosions in Sirik and 4 in Maysan village on Qeshm Island south of Iran.
Update: Fars News Agency: Echoes of 10 explosions in Sirik and 4 in Maysan village on Qeshm Island south of Iran.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
ILREDALERT @ILREDALERT Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister says the US strikes on Iran constitute a serious violation of Articles 1 and 2 of the Islamabad memorandum of understanding. He also accuses Washington of repeated violations of the memorandum through Israeli actions in Lebanon and threats against Iran. - Tasnim
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Faytuks Network @FaytuksNetwork Iranian state-affiliated Mehr News reports of explosions in Bandar Abbas
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Gmi@ mil infoThe United States is currently conducting a broad series of strikes against Iranian targets along the Strait of Hormuz in response to recent Iranian drone attacks on commercial shipping.
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Faytuks Network @FaytuksNetwork U.S. official says that Iran has "clearly demonstrated they’re not listening. We’re turning up the volume." - PBS
danielboon
TB Fanatic
Faytuks Network @FaytuksNetwork The U.S. strikes in Iran are four or five times bigger in scope and power than the previous strikes 10 days ago, U.S. official says - Axios
danielboon
TB Fanatic
OSINTdefender @sentdefender As reports of additional U.S. strikes against Iranian targets abound, CNN has been told by a U.S. official that these strikes are “punishment, not proportional,” and that said strikes will not be as quick-ending as past U.S. retaliatory strikes in response to Iranian provocations. Retaliatory Iranian strikes on Gulf countries are now expected in the coming hours and days.
Posted for fair use......
www.thenationalnews.com
Thomas Watkins
Washington
July 07, 2026
The US military launched new strikes against Iranian targets on Tuesday after Washington accused Tehran of attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The latest military action has cast fresh doubt on the durability of a ceasefire that has been in place for three months, and comes even as the two sides attempt to hammer out a long-term peace deal.
Central Command said its forces hit over 80 Iranian targets, striking more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats, air defence systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites and anti-ship missile capabilities.
No talks unless US stops threats, Iran says
Read More
The action came in response to Iran attacking three commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, Centcom said, accusing Iranian forces of a "clear and dangerous violation" of the ceasefire.
"Centcom forces remain postured and prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed," Centcom said in a statement.
Iranian state media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas, Qesh, Sirik and other areas.
Reports on social media included video of what were said to be fires burning at the port in Bandar Abbas on the Strait of Hormuz.
The US earlier said it was revoking a general licence that authorised the sale of Iranian oil, putting new economic pressure on Tehran after it was blamed for recent attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.
A US official warned Iran's actions in the waterway were "wholly unacceptable" and "will be met with consequences".
Qatar's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said Doha holds Iran "fully legally responsible" for an attack that hit a Qatari LNG tanker in the strait, causing a fire in the engine room.
Al Rekkayat was one of two vessels reported to have been struck by missiles while transiting the waterway on Monday night.
The US and Iran declared a ceasefire in early April, and in mid-June the two sides signed an agreement aimed at bringing the war to a close.
Despite the agreement and promises to work towards peace, both countries have accused each other of breaching the ceasefire.
Tehran says the US has continued to launch attacks on Iranian territory and has allowed Israel to continue its war in Lebanon, while the US has highlighted Iranian mine-laying and drone attacks in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iranian regime has in recent days put on a public show of force and defiance after the US moved to end the war it started on February 28 alongside Israel.
Tehran's top leaders appeared publicly at funeral commemorations for Iran's former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
He was killed during the opening strikes by the US and Israel that also attacked a senior command meeting in Tehran.
Some among the throngs of mourners at this week's funeral events issued death threats against US President Donald Trump.
Oil prices, which had cooled considerably in recent weeks, jumped on news of the US attacks.
Updated: July 07, 2026, 7:46 PM
US strikes dozens of Iranian targets after accusing it of breaching ceasefire | The National
Washington earlier revoked general licence allowing sale of Iranian oil
www.thenationalnews.com
US strikes dozens of Iranian targets after accusing it of breaching ceasefire
Washington earlier revoked general licence allowing sale of Iranian oil
Sara RuthvenThomas Watkins
Washington
July 07, 2026
The US military launched new strikes against Iranian targets on Tuesday after Washington accused Tehran of attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The latest military action has cast fresh doubt on the durability of a ceasefire that has been in place for three months, and comes even as the two sides attempt to hammer out a long-term peace deal.
Central Command said its forces hit over 80 Iranian targets, striking more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats, air defence systems, command and control networks, coastal radar sites and anti-ship missile capabilities.
No talks unless US stops threats, Iran says
Read More
The action came in response to Iran attacking three commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz, Centcom said, accusing Iranian forces of a "clear and dangerous violation" of the ceasefire.
"Centcom forces remain postured and prepared to hold Iran accountable when the agreement is not adhered to or obeyed," Centcom said in a statement.
Iranian state media reported explosions in Bandar Abbas, Qesh, Sirik and other areas.
Reports on social media included video of what were said to be fires burning at the port in Bandar Abbas on the Strait of Hormuz.
The US earlier said it was revoking a general licence that authorised the sale of Iranian oil, putting new economic pressure on Tehran after it was blamed for recent attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.
A US official warned Iran's actions in the waterway were "wholly unacceptable" and "will be met with consequences".
Qatar's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said Doha holds Iran "fully legally responsible" for an attack that hit a Qatari LNG tanker in the strait, causing a fire in the engine room.
Al Rekkayat was one of two vessels reported to have been struck by missiles while transiting the waterway on Monday night.
The US and Iran declared a ceasefire in early April, and in mid-June the two sides signed an agreement aimed at bringing the war to a close.
Despite the agreement and promises to work towards peace, both countries have accused each other of breaching the ceasefire.
Tehran says the US has continued to launch attacks on Iranian territory and has allowed Israel to continue its war in Lebanon, while the US has highlighted Iranian mine-laying and drone attacks in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Iranian regime has in recent days put on a public show of force and defiance after the US moved to end the war it started on February 28 alongside Israel.
Tehran's top leaders appeared publicly at funeral commemorations for Iran's former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
He was killed during the opening strikes by the US and Israel that also attacked a senior command meeting in Tehran.
Some among the throngs of mourners at this week's funeral events issued death threats against US President Donald Trump.
Oil prices, which had cooled considerably in recent weeks, jumped on news of the US attacks.
Updated: July 07, 2026, 7:46 PM
Macgyver
You also got your last Timebomb. Well that sucks.
Posted for fair use......
By Janatan Sayeh | July 7, 2026 | @JanatanSayeh
Published 9:03 PM
United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced on July 7 that it had launched an attack wave on targets in Iran “to impose heavy costs” in response to the Islamic Republic’s strikes against three ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Although anonymous US officials told CNN that the latest kinetic campaign is a “punishment” and added that “it won’t be over for a bit,” the targets were limited to military installations on Iran’s southern coast and not major cities like Tehran.
Later that day, media affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reported “explosions in the cities of Bandar Abbas, Qeshm, and Sirik,” located near Iran’s southern coast. Footage circulating on social media shows strikes hitting targets across Bandar Abbas.
The Tehran regime had struck three tankers earlier on July 7, including a Qatari natural gas carrier and a Saudi crude tanker. The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar condemned the attack.
Tehran claimed responsibility for striking the Qatari Al Rekayyat tanker, with official state broadcasting stating that the vessel was hit as it “ignored repeated warnings” and “intended to transit the Omani route through the Strait of Hormuz under the protection of the U.S. Navy.”
A cargo vessel was also struck on June 25 off the coast of Oman via “an unknown projectile,” likely a drone. Later that day, the IRGC Navy declared that only vessels using its designated shipping lanes would be permitted to transit the chokehold and all ships must coordinate with the force before entering the waterway. Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), an IRGC-controlled entity established in May to regulate and enforce transit through the Strait of Hormuz, warned later that day: “The consequences of transiting unauthorized routes shall be borne by the vessel owner, operator and master.”
Prior to the recent conflict, ships transited the Strait of Hormuz through internationally recognized traffic lanes adopted under the International Maritime Organization. After mines and attacks by the Islamic Republic disrupted navigation, Oman and the International Maritime Organization established a temporary maritime corridor to allow commercial shipping to continue transiting the strait.
Tehran protests sanctions waiver revocation
General License X, issued by the US Treasury Department on June 22 to implement the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Tehran and Washington, temporarily suspended the application of penalties under 11 Iran-related sanctions authorities for transactions ordinarily incident to the production, sale, delivery, offloading, and payment of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products, and petrochemicals through August 21. It authorized buyers, shippers, insurers, ports, financial institutions, and other service providers to participate in those transactions, including direct payments to Iran that otherwise would have been sanctionable.
However, Treasury downgraded the waiver on July 7 in response to Tehran’s aggression and issued General License X1 revoking those authorities. It no longer permits new purchases, loading, or shipments of Iranian oil after July 7. Instead, only transactions necessary to complete deals already authorized under General License X through July 17 are allowed, and any payments to blocked persons must be placed into interest-bearing blocked accounts in the United States rather than remaining available to Iran.
Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the decision as a violation of Article 10 of the MoU, which states that Washington “will issue waivers for the export of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products, and derivatives, and all associated services, including banking transactions, insurances, transportation, etc.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ statement also noted that Tehran “warns of the consequences of the United States’ breach of its commitments and states that Iran will take whatever measures it deems necessary to safeguard its national interests and national security.”
Janatan Sayeh is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies focused on Iranian domestic affairs and the Islamic Republic’s regional malign influence.
CENTCOM strikes Iran as Tehran condemns US sanctions waiver revocation
The Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Iran faced its most significant test yet on July 7 after Iran attacked commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Washington responded with a new round of military strikes and sharply narrowed its oil sanctions waiver, with both sides accusing...
www.longwarjournal.org
CENTCOM strikes Iran as Tehran condemns US sanctions waiver revocation
By Janatan Sayeh | July 7, 2026 | @JanatanSayeh
Published 9:03 PM
United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced on July 7 that it had launched an attack wave on targets in Iran “to impose heavy costs” in response to the Islamic Republic’s strikes against three ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Although anonymous US officials told CNN that the latest kinetic campaign is a “punishment” and added that “it won’t be over for a bit,” the targets were limited to military installations on Iran’s southern coast and not major cities like Tehran.
Later that day, media affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reported “explosions in the cities of Bandar Abbas, Qeshm, and Sirik,” located near Iran’s southern coast. Footage circulating on social media shows strikes hitting targets across Bandar Abbas.
The Tehran regime had struck three tankers earlier on July 7, including a Qatari natural gas carrier and a Saudi crude tanker. The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar condemned the attack.
Tehran claimed responsibility for striking the Qatari Al Rekayyat tanker, with official state broadcasting stating that the vessel was hit as it “ignored repeated warnings” and “intended to transit the Omani route through the Strait of Hormuz under the protection of the U.S. Navy.”
A cargo vessel was also struck on June 25 off the coast of Oman via “an unknown projectile,” likely a drone. Later that day, the IRGC Navy declared that only vessels using its designated shipping lanes would be permitted to transit the chokehold and all ships must coordinate with the force before entering the waterway. Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), an IRGC-controlled entity established in May to regulate and enforce transit through the Strait of Hormuz, warned later that day: “The consequences of transiting unauthorized routes shall be borne by the vessel owner, operator and master.”
Prior to the recent conflict, ships transited the Strait of Hormuz through internationally recognized traffic lanes adopted under the International Maritime Organization. After mines and attacks by the Islamic Republic disrupted navigation, Oman and the International Maritime Organization established a temporary maritime corridor to allow commercial shipping to continue transiting the strait.
Tehran protests sanctions waiver revocation
General License X, issued by the US Treasury Department on June 22 to implement the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Tehran and Washington, temporarily suspended the application of penalties under 11 Iran-related sanctions authorities for transactions ordinarily incident to the production, sale, delivery, offloading, and payment of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products, and petrochemicals through August 21. It authorized buyers, shippers, insurers, ports, financial institutions, and other service providers to participate in those transactions, including direct payments to Iran that otherwise would have been sanctionable.
However, Treasury downgraded the waiver on July 7 in response to Tehran’s aggression and issued General License X1 revoking those authorities. It no longer permits new purchases, loading, or shipments of Iranian oil after July 7. Instead, only transactions necessary to complete deals already authorized under General License X through July 17 are allowed, and any payments to blocked persons must be placed into interest-bearing blocked accounts in the United States rather than remaining available to Iran.
Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the decision as a violation of Article 10 of the MoU, which states that Washington “will issue waivers for the export of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products, and derivatives, and all associated services, including banking transactions, insurances, transportation, etc.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ statement also noted that Tehran “warns of the consequences of the United States’ breach of its commitments and states that Iran will take whatever measures it deems necessary to safeguard its national interests and national security.”
Janatan Sayeh is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies focused on Iranian domestic affairs and the Islamic Republic’s regional malign influence.
Hummm.....
Posted for fair use......
smallwarsjournal.com
Essay| The Latest
Strategic success now belongs to international actors who embrace the guerrilla logic of asymmetry, attrition, decentralization, adaptation, and psychological exhaustion.
The most enduring lesson of modern warfare may not come from advanced fighter jets, stealth bombers, or precision-guided munitions. It may come from guerrilla warfare.
For decades, military power has been measured through conventional metrics: the number of aircraft, tanks, ships, and soldiers a state can deploy. Western strategic thought has long been dominated by the search for a decisive battle, an idea that overwhelming force coupled with technological superiority and concentrated violence can compel an adversary into submission. Victory may thus be achieved through the destruction of an opponent’s military capacity and the erosion of its ability to continue fighting, or, as Clausewitz puts it, the breaking of its will to fight.
Yet recent conflicts have repeatedly challenged this. From Vietnam to Afghanistan, from Southern Lebanon to the Red Sea, materially weaker actors have demonstrated an extraordinary ability to frustrate, exhaust, and outlast militarily superior adversaries. This certainly was not the result of power accumulation in conventional hard power terms, but rather through the very refusal to fight on conventional terms.
The 2026 war involving Iran, Israel, and the United States offers the starkest reminder yet. As Erfan Fard observes, Israeli and US strikes substantially degraded Iran’s conventional military, damaging its air defense, navy, and command structure, and killing senior officials. The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) claims to have struck over 1,000 targets in the first 24 hours of the war and 5,000 within ten days. This was enabled by the Maven Smart System, built by Palantir and integrated with AI language models drawing from nearly 180 classified data sources to generate targeting and prioritization at a scale no human command chain could match. By any conventional measure, the campaign should have been decisive and the outcome unambiguous.
Yet declarations of decisive victory remain elusive, a paradox that has characterized the defining conflicts of the past half-century. The United States won most major battles in Vietnam, yet lost the war. Twenty years of military dominance in Afghanistan culminated in a Taliban return to power. Israel has repeatedly degraded Hezbollah’s military capabilities while remaining unable to eliminate it as a political and military force.
Dominant traditions in Western strategic thought, from Clausewitz’s decisive battle to Schelling’s coercive signaling, alongside their war-making institutions, rest on a quantifiable metric of success: body counts, numbers of destroyed launchers and navy ships, and the eliminated commander. All visible, politically actionable, and most importantly, announce-able. For more than two decades, it has shaped national security policy in Washington through one of its most seductive applications: decapitation strikes.
Trump’s declaration that Iran’s leaders were “all dead, so I think we won” was not an aberration of strategic illiteracy. It was the endpoint of a logic that Israel, Washington, and much of the Western security establishment have operated on for decades – the belief that killing the head kills the body.
Israel’s record is instructive precisely because of its consistency. Targeted killings stretch from German scientists assisting Egypt’s missile program in the 1960s to Iraqi scientists under Saddam, to Hamas commanders, to Hezbollah leadership, to Iranian military and political figures in 2026. The operational sophistication has only grown, particularly in terms of lethality, yet the strategic results have not. If every commander killed is replaced, and every decapitation produces adaptation, the failure has less to do with precision and more to do with defining success incorrectly.
Often, this occurs due to the treatment of asymmetry as a permanent advantage. That superior technology, like the F-35 Lightning II and Tomahawk missiles, and resources would reliably translate into decisive outcomes is opposite to the premise on which guerrilla strategies start. Instead, a political-military framework is designed to neutralize that advantage, built on the recognition that a weaker party cannot prevail by fighting on the stronger party’s terms.
This operates through two interlocking logics.
The first concerns the trade between time and space. Both Mao’s protracted warfare and Che Guevara’s Foco theory share a central premise: survival matters more than victory in any single engagement. By carefully regulating violence and exchanging space for time, a weaker force could convert an enemy’s material superiority into a logistical and political liability. The objective was not annihilation but endurance: sustaining pressure until the adversary’s domestic political constituency for continuing the war eroded faster than the capacity to fight.
In an era of deep economic interdependence, this logic carries greater force on the battlefield. As we have seen play out through Iran’s strategic and Mosaic defense doctrine, a strategic statement – denying America and Israel a decisive outcome by extending the conflict into a timeline where cumulative costs outpace potential gains – has essentially left the Trump administration “with no option but to settle for a deal that ends all fighting to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.” This not only represents protracted war logic at a state scale but also shows the development of guerrilla strategies in modern-day conflicts, where Iran traded military attrition for geo-economic disruption.
A targeted campaign of missile and drone strikes against commercial vessels, limited in number but calibrated for market impact, was sufficient to collapse transit volumes through the Strait of Hormuz by approximately 90%. The imposition of a coastal inspection corridor routing westbound tankers north around Larak Island under Iranian supervision allowed Tehran to reassert practical control over the waterway without formal interdiction, complicating any Western effort to force a clear resolution.
Critically, the costs were not absorbed by Iran alone. They were distributed across global energy markets, Asian fuel supplies, and international shipping and insurance industries. This is the geo-economic dimension of protracted warfare: the financial burden of conflict is exported well beyond the theatre of operations.
The second logic concerns where decisive pressure is applied. Conventional doctrine locates the centre of gravity on the battlefield – in the destruction of enemy forces and the seizure of territory. The guerrilla calculus places it in the political and psychological environment surrounding the conflict. The Houthis’ Red Sea campaign from 2023 onwards, for example, was not designed to defeat the US Navy in any conventional sense. Its objective was to demonstrate that the US Navy could not guarantee freedom of navigation; a narrower but strategically significant goal, and one they achieved. Global shipping rerouted, insurance premiums rose sharply, and naval assets were committed to open-ended deployments. These outcomes were produced by an actor with no air force, no blue-water navy, and defense resources that would not sustain a single American destroyer’s annual operating costs.
The numbers make this argument more straightforward. Houthi drones costing between $20,000 and $40,000 forced US interceptor launches costing between $500,000 and $4 million per shot. The Navy expended nearly $1 billion in munitions over six months of Red Sea operations alone. During the Iran war, the US was reportedly spending $2 billion a day, with serious concern that interceptor stocks could be exhausted within weeks. Iran’s Shahed drones, at $20,000 to $35,000 each, were being met by Israeli Arrow interceptors at $3.5 million apiece. Israel’s Alma Research Centre summarized the dynamic plainly: “hundreds of dollars are defeating millions of dollars.”
This is a cost asymmetry deployed as a strategy. The point is not to match the adversary’s firepower but to make its deployment fiscally irrational over time – to grind the adversary’s political economy of weapons until continuation becomes more expensive than withdrawal. This is Mao’s logic, now expressed through industrial cost ratios rather than territorial exchange. By mid-2024, senior Pentagon officials were already describing their reliance on high-end interceptors as unsustainable, with production lags running to years rather than weeks.
Where air superiority was once the preserve of wealthy states able to afford advanced aircraft and the pilots to fly them, cheap attack drones are eroding that advantage with considerable speed. Hezbollah has moved towards locally manufactured drones costing approximately $300 to $400 each, produced using 3D printing, that penetrated Israeli armored vehicles and, on multiple occasions, defeated the Trophy active protection system on Merkava tanks.
Hamas, facing one of the most sophisticated surveillance architectures in the world, chose to minimize electronic communications entirely and used paragliders to breach Israeli defense, circumventing billions of dollars of technology through deliberate technological regression.
Iran, having lost most of its conventional naval capacity in the early strikes, deployed instead dispersed formations of armed speedboats – what analysts have called “mosquito fleets” – to assert practical control over the Strait of Hormuz without offering a concentrated target to strike. The informational dimension runs alongside this. A Shahed drone striking a US military position or penetrating the Iron Dome matters. The footage of that strike, released within hours across Telegram, may matter as much strategically.
What connects these cases goes beyond improvisation to an increasing adaptation by global political actors to the rise of irregular warfare and, therefore, to the development of alternative strategies. The Gulf states seemed to come to this conclusion during the attacks they faced from their neighbor, where, despite a formal American security commitment, some brought in Ukrainian military experts to advise on countering Shahed drone swarms. Ukraine’s relevance lay not in its conventional military capacity but in its experience adapting to irregular warfare and its military innovation in real time.
There is also a long-term dimension. Western militaries have prided themselves on the AI systems they have developed. But that technology no longer remains the exclusive property of states. Commercial drones, open-source satellite imagery, and AI-assisted planning tools are increasingly accessible to non-state and sub-state actors. The guerrilla of the twenty-first century may acquire in AI what the guerrilla of the twentieth acquired in the AK-47: a tool that dramatically lowers the barrier to effective, sustained warfare.
As Henry Kissinger observed of Vietnam, “the guerrilla wins if he does not lose; the conventional army loses if it does not win.” The 2026 war reproduced that same logic, only at a far greater scale. Until the strategic assumptions underpinning conventional military strategies are revised, the pattern will hold.
Posted for fair use......
Iran Didn't Need to Win The War. It Needed to Outlast It
Iran's war strategy reveals why survival and attrition can matter more than battlefield victory.
smallwarsjournal.com
Essay| The Latest
Iran Didn’t Need to Win The War. It Needed to Outlast It
by Ghufrane Daymi | 07.08.2026 at 06:00amStrategic success now belongs to international actors who embrace the guerrilla logic of asymmetry, attrition, decentralization, adaptation, and psychological exhaustion.
Introduction
The most enduring lesson of modern warfare may not come from advanced fighter jets, stealth bombers, or precision-guided munitions. It may come from guerrilla warfare.
For decades, military power has been measured through conventional metrics: the number of aircraft, tanks, ships, and soldiers a state can deploy. Western strategic thought has long been dominated by the search for a decisive battle, an idea that overwhelming force coupled with technological superiority and concentrated violence can compel an adversary into submission. Victory may thus be achieved through the destruction of an opponent’s military capacity and the erosion of its ability to continue fighting, or, as Clausewitz puts it, the breaking of its will to fight.
Yet recent conflicts have repeatedly challenged this. From Vietnam to Afghanistan, from Southern Lebanon to the Red Sea, materially weaker actors have demonstrated an extraordinary ability to frustrate, exhaust, and outlast militarily superior adversaries. This certainly was not the result of power accumulation in conventional hard power terms, but rather through the very refusal to fight on conventional terms.
The 2026 war involving Iran, Israel, and the United States offers the starkest reminder yet. As Erfan Fard observes, Israeli and US strikes substantially degraded Iran’s conventional military, damaging its air defense, navy, and command structure, and killing senior officials. The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) claims to have struck over 1,000 targets in the first 24 hours of the war and 5,000 within ten days. This was enabled by the Maven Smart System, built by Palantir and integrated with AI language models drawing from nearly 180 classified data sources to generate targeting and prioritization at a scale no human command chain could match. By any conventional measure, the campaign should have been decisive and the outcome unambiguous.
Yet declarations of decisive victory remain elusive, a paradox that has characterized the defining conflicts of the past half-century. The United States won most major battles in Vietnam, yet lost the war. Twenty years of military dominance in Afghanistan culminated in a Taliban return to power. Israel has repeatedly degraded Hezbollah’s military capabilities while remaining unable to eliminate it as a political and military force.
Winning Battles, But Not Wars
Dominant traditions in Western strategic thought, from Clausewitz’s decisive battle to Schelling’s coercive signaling, alongside their war-making institutions, rest on a quantifiable metric of success: body counts, numbers of destroyed launchers and navy ships, and the eliminated commander. All visible, politically actionable, and most importantly, announce-able. For more than two decades, it has shaped national security policy in Washington through one of its most seductive applications: decapitation strikes.
Trump’s declaration that Iran’s leaders were “all dead, so I think we won” was not an aberration of strategic illiteracy. It was the endpoint of a logic that Israel, Washington, and much of the Western security establishment have operated on for decades – the belief that killing the head kills the body.
Israel’s record is instructive precisely because of its consistency. Targeted killings stretch from German scientists assisting Egypt’s missile program in the 1960s to Iraqi scientists under Saddam, to Hamas commanders, to Hezbollah leadership, to Iranian military and political figures in 2026. The operational sophistication has only grown, particularly in terms of lethality, yet the strategic results have not. If every commander killed is replaced, and every decapitation produces adaptation, the failure has less to do with precision and more to do with defining success incorrectly.
The Guerrilla’s Logic Is a Strategy, Not a Tactic
Often, this occurs due to the treatment of asymmetry as a permanent advantage. That superior technology, like the F-35 Lightning II and Tomahawk missiles, and resources would reliably translate into decisive outcomes is opposite to the premise on which guerrilla strategies start. Instead, a political-military framework is designed to neutralize that advantage, built on the recognition that a weaker party cannot prevail by fighting on the stronger party’s terms.
This operates through two interlocking logics.
The first concerns the trade between time and space. Both Mao’s protracted warfare and Che Guevara’s Foco theory share a central premise: survival matters more than victory in any single engagement. By carefully regulating violence and exchanging space for time, a weaker force could convert an enemy’s material superiority into a logistical and political liability. The objective was not annihilation but endurance: sustaining pressure until the adversary’s domestic political constituency for continuing the war eroded faster than the capacity to fight.
In an era of deep economic interdependence, this logic carries greater force on the battlefield. As we have seen play out through Iran’s strategic and Mosaic defense doctrine, a strategic statement – denying America and Israel a decisive outcome by extending the conflict into a timeline where cumulative costs outpace potential gains – has essentially left the Trump administration “with no option but to settle for a deal that ends all fighting to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.” This not only represents protracted war logic at a state scale but also shows the development of guerrilla strategies in modern-day conflicts, where Iran traded military attrition for geo-economic disruption.
A targeted campaign of missile and drone strikes against commercial vessels, limited in number but calibrated for market impact, was sufficient to collapse transit volumes through the Strait of Hormuz by approximately 90%. The imposition of a coastal inspection corridor routing westbound tankers north around Larak Island under Iranian supervision allowed Tehran to reassert practical control over the waterway without formal interdiction, complicating any Western effort to force a clear resolution.
Critically, the costs were not absorbed by Iran alone. They were distributed across global energy markets, Asian fuel supplies, and international shipping and insurance industries. This is the geo-economic dimension of protracted warfare: the financial burden of conflict is exported well beyond the theatre of operations.
The second logic concerns where decisive pressure is applied. Conventional doctrine locates the centre of gravity on the battlefield – in the destruction of enemy forces and the seizure of territory. The guerrilla calculus places it in the political and psychological environment surrounding the conflict. The Houthis’ Red Sea campaign from 2023 onwards, for example, was not designed to defeat the US Navy in any conventional sense. Its objective was to demonstrate that the US Navy could not guarantee freedom of navigation; a narrower but strategically significant goal, and one they achieved. Global shipping rerouted, insurance premiums rose sharply, and naval assets were committed to open-ended deployments. These outcomes were produced by an actor with no air force, no blue-water navy, and defense resources that would not sustain a single American destroyer’s annual operating costs.
Attrition Has Become Democratized
The numbers make this argument more straightforward. Houthi drones costing between $20,000 and $40,000 forced US interceptor launches costing between $500,000 and $4 million per shot. The Navy expended nearly $1 billion in munitions over six months of Red Sea operations alone. During the Iran war, the US was reportedly spending $2 billion a day, with serious concern that interceptor stocks could be exhausted within weeks. Iran’s Shahed drones, at $20,000 to $35,000 each, were being met by Israeli Arrow interceptors at $3.5 million apiece. Israel’s Alma Research Centre summarized the dynamic plainly: “hundreds of dollars are defeating millions of dollars.”
This is a cost asymmetry deployed as a strategy. The point is not to match the adversary’s firepower but to make its deployment fiscally irrational over time – to grind the adversary’s political economy of weapons until continuation becomes more expensive than withdrawal. This is Mao’s logic, now expressed through industrial cost ratios rather than territorial exchange. By mid-2024, senior Pentagon officials were already describing their reliance on high-end interceptors as unsustainable, with production lags running to years rather than weeks.
Where air superiority was once the preserve of wealthy states able to afford advanced aircraft and the pilots to fly them, cheap attack drones are eroding that advantage with considerable speed. Hezbollah has moved towards locally manufactured drones costing approximately $300 to $400 each, produced using 3D printing, that penetrated Israeli armored vehicles and, on multiple occasions, defeated the Trophy active protection system on Merkava tanks.
Hamas, facing one of the most sophisticated surveillance architectures in the world, chose to minimize electronic communications entirely and used paragliders to breach Israeli defense, circumventing billions of dollars of technology through deliberate technological regression.
Iran, having lost most of its conventional naval capacity in the early strikes, deployed instead dispersed formations of armed speedboats – what analysts have called “mosquito fleets” – to assert practical control over the Strait of Hormuz without offering a concentrated target to strike. The informational dimension runs alongside this. A Shahed drone striking a US military position or penetrating the Iron Dome matters. The footage of that strike, released within hours across Telegram, may matter as much strategically.
What connects these cases goes beyond improvisation to an increasing adaptation by global political actors to the rise of irregular warfare and, therefore, to the development of alternative strategies. The Gulf states seemed to come to this conclusion during the attacks they faced from their neighbor, where, despite a formal American security commitment, some brought in Ukrainian military experts to advise on countering Shahed drone swarms. Ukraine’s relevance lay not in its conventional military capacity but in its experience adapting to irregular warfare and its military innovation in real time.
Battlefields of the Future, or the Past?
There is also a long-term dimension. Western militaries have prided themselves on the AI systems they have developed. But that technology no longer remains the exclusive property of states. Commercial drones, open-source satellite imagery, and AI-assisted planning tools are increasingly accessible to non-state and sub-state actors. The guerrilla of the twenty-first century may acquire in AI what the guerrilla of the twentieth acquired in the AK-47: a tool that dramatically lowers the barrier to effective, sustained warfare.
As Henry Kissinger observed of Vietnam, “the guerrilla wins if he does not lose; the conventional army loses if it does not win.” The 2026 war reproduced that same logic, only at a far greater scale. Until the strategic assumptions underpinning conventional military strategies are revised, the pattern will hold.
Posted for fair use......
www.france24.com
Ankara (AFP) – US President Donald Trump said Wednesday the ceasefire with Iran was "over" following major exchanges of fire between US forces and the Islamic republic.
Issued on: 08/07/2026 - 10:51
Trump blasted Iran as "scum" and "cuckoo" after Washington launched strikes on the Islamic Republic overnight and Iran's Guards said they had targeted US bases in the Gulf.
Oil prices jumped five percent after Trump's remarks.
"I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them any more, they're scum," Trump said at a NATO summit in the Turkish capital Ankara when asked if the truce with Iran was now finished.
"They're scum, they're sick people, they're led by sick people, and they're vicious, violent people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, they'd use it.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's over."
Trump said he would speak to businessman-turned-negotiator Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, who have been dealing with the Iranians, but insisted it was up to Tehran to return to the table.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's just a waste of time dealing with them. They're liars."
Trump accused the Iranians of repeatedly misrepresenting what had been agreed in the ceasefire that Washington and Tehran signed on June 17.
"Everyone's agreed, no nuclear weapon. We make a deal. They go outside, joke to the press, they say we never even talked about it. There's something wrong with them, they're cuckoo," Trump added.
© 2026 AFP
Trump says Iran ceasefire 'is over'
US President Donald Trump said Wednesday the ceasefire with Iran was "over" following major exchanges of fire between US forces and the Islamic republic.
www.france24.com
Trump says Iran ceasefire 'is over'
Ankara (AFP) – US President Donald Trump said Wednesday the ceasefire with Iran was "over" following major exchanges of fire between US forces and the Islamic republic.
Issued on: 08/07/2026 - 10:51
Trump blasted Iran as "scum" and "cuckoo" after Washington launched strikes on the Islamic Republic overnight and Iran's Guards said they had targeted US bases in the Gulf.
Oil prices jumped five percent after Trump's remarks.
"I think it's over. I don't want to deal with them any more, they're scum," Trump said at a NATO summit in the Turkish capital Ankara when asked if the truce with Iran was now finished.
"They're scum, they're sick people, they're led by sick people, and they're vicious, violent people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, they'd use it.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's over."
Trump said he would speak to businessman-turned-negotiator Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, who have been dealing with the Iranians, but insisted it was up to Tehran to return to the table.
"As far as I'm concerned, it's just a waste of time dealing with them. They're liars."
Trump accused the Iranians of repeatedly misrepresenting what had been agreed in the ceasefire that Washington and Tehran signed on June 17.
"Everyone's agreed, no nuclear weapon. We make a deal. They go outside, joke to the press, they say we never even talked about it. There's something wrong with them, they're cuckoo," Trump added.
© 2026 AFP
Posted for fair use......
www.aa.com.tr
Diyar Guldogan
08 July 2026•Update: 08 July 2026
WASHINGTON
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran to end the conflict was “over.”
"It's a very interesting question to me. I think it's over," Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Türkiye's capital, Ankara when asked whether the MoU is dead.
"I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum," he added.
Trump said that he does not want to do trade with Spain, calling it "a terrible partner" in NATO.
"We don't want to do any trade business with Spain anymore. By the way, I'd like you to cut it up.
"Spain is a terrible partner in NATO. They don't participate, they don't pay. I don't want anything to do with Spain," Trump said.
Trump also ordered Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to cut off trade with Spain immediately.
"Cut off all trade with Spain, please, including visits… I don't want to do any more trade with them. All right, take it immediately," he said.
Trump reiterated that he is "not happy" with NATO over insufficient support during the war with Iran.
Trump says memorandum of understanding with Iran to end war is 'over'
'I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum,' US president says | Anadolu
Trump says memorandum of understanding with Iran to end war is 'over'
'I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum,' US president saysDiyar Guldogan
08 July 2026•Update: 08 July 2026
WASHINGTON
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the memorandum of understanding signed with Iran to end the conflict was “over.”
"It's a very interesting question to me. I think it's over," Trump on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Türkiye's capital, Ankara when asked whether the MoU is dead.
"I don't want to deal with them anymore. They're scum," he added.
Trump says he cuts off all trade with Spain
Trump said that he does not want to do trade with Spain, calling it "a terrible partner" in NATO."We don't want to do any trade business with Spain anymore. By the way, I'd like you to cut it up.
"Spain is a terrible partner in NATO. They don't participate, they don't pay. I don't want anything to do with Spain," Trump said.
Trump also ordered Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to cut off trade with Spain immediately.
"Cut off all trade with Spain, please, including visits… I don't want to do any more trade with them. All right, take it immediately," he said.
Trump reiterated that he is "not happy" with NATO over insufficient support during the war with Iran.
Posted for fair use......
Live Update
From the Liveblog of Wednesday, July 8, 2026
Today, 11:42 am
US President Donald Trump fumes at Iran following overnight US strikes on the country in response to Tehran’s attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, saying he thinks the US-Iran memorandum of understanding “is over.”
“To me, I think it’s over,” Trump says of the MOU while taking questions from reporters ahead of a summit of NATO leaders in Ankara. “I don’t want to deal with them. They’re scum.”
x.com
“They’re sick people. They’re led by sick people. And they’re vicious, violent people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, they’d use it. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over,” the president says.
He condemns Tehran for attacking ships despite assurance by the US that it wouldn’t escalate the conflict during funeral processions of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated at the start of the US-Israeli war: “We said, ‘Go and do your funeral stuff,’ and instead of that, they start shooting rockets at ships yesterday. And so we hit them very hard last night, very hard.”
Trump also charges that Iran seeks to assassinate him, saying he appears on certain “lists” in Iran. It’s unclear what Trump refers to exactly, though circulating footage of Iranian mourners calling for his death at Khamenei’s funeral has received widespread attention this week.
“They want to take out the US leader — me. I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m on every single one of their lists. And so far, I guess I’ve been a bit lucky, but maybe that doesn’t last very long,” he says.
“These are evil, sick people. And we have to root out that cancer. That cancer. You know what you do? You’ve got to cut out cancer early. And that’s the way I feel,” the president says.
Live Update
From the Liveblog of Wednesday, July 8, 2026 Trump fumes at Iran after overnight attacks: I think MOU is over, they’re ‘scum’
By Nava FreibergToday, 11:42 am
US President Donald Trump fumes at Iran following overnight US strikes on the country in response to Tehran’s attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, saying he thinks the US-Iran memorandum of understanding “is over.”
“To me, I think it’s over,” Trump says of the MOU while taking questions from reporters ahead of a summit of NATO leaders in Ankara. “I don’t want to deal with them. They’re scum.”
Open Source Intel (@Osint613) on X
WATCH: President Trump on the MOU with Iran: “They are scum… as far as im concerned it’s over”
“They’re sick people. They’re led by sick people. And they’re vicious, violent people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, they’d use it. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over,” the president says.
He condemns Tehran for attacking ships despite assurance by the US that it wouldn’t escalate the conflict during funeral processions of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated at the start of the US-Israeli war: “We said, ‘Go and do your funeral stuff,’ and instead of that, they start shooting rockets at ships yesterday. And so we hit them very hard last night, very hard.”
Trump also charges that Iran seeks to assassinate him, saying he appears on certain “lists” in Iran. It’s unclear what Trump refers to exactly, though circulating footage of Iranian mourners calling for his death at Khamenei’s funeral has received widespread attention this week.
“They want to take out the US leader — me. I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m on every single one of their lists. And so far, I guess I’ve been a bit lucky, but maybe that doesn’t last very long,” he says.
“These are evil, sick people. And we have to root out that cancer. That cancer. You know what you do? You’ve got to cut out cancer early. And that’s the way I feel,” the president says.
More from today’s Liveblog:
auxman
Deus vult...
Posted for fair use......
Live Update
Trump fumes at Iran after overnight attacks: I think MOU is over, they’re ‘scum’
By Nava Freiberg
Today, 11:42 am
US President Donald Trump fumes at Iran following overnight US strikes on the country in response to Tehran’s attacks on tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, saying he thinks the US-Iran memorandum of understanding “is over.”
“To me, I think it’s over,” Trump says of the MOU while taking questions from reporters ahead of a summit of NATO leaders in Ankara. “I don’t want to deal with them. They’re scum.”
Open Source Intel (@Osint613) on X
WATCH: President Trump on the MOU with Iran: “They are scum… as far as im concerned it’s over”
“They’re sick people. They’re led by sick people. And they’re vicious, violent people. And if they had a nuclear weapon, they’d use it. As far as I’m concerned, it’s over,” the president says.
He condemns Tehran for attacking ships despite assurance by the US that it wouldn’t escalate the conflict during funeral processions of Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated at the start of the US-Israeli war: “We said, ‘Go and do your funeral stuff,’ and instead of that, they start shooting rockets at ships yesterday. And so we hit them very hard last night, very hard.”
Trump also charges that Iran seeks to assassinate him, saying he appears on certain “lists” in Iran. It’s unclear what Trump refers to exactly, though circulating footage of Iranian mourners calling for his death at Khamenei’s funeral has received widespread attention this week.
“They want to take out the US leader — me. I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m on every single one of their lists. And so far, I guess I’ve been a bit lucky, but maybe that doesn’t last very long,” he says.
“These are evil, sick people. And we have to root out that cancer. That cancer. You know what you do? You’ve got to cut out cancer early. And that’s the way I feel,” the president says.
More from today’s Liveblog:
RT 0:26
View: https://twitter.com/i/status/2074771602466537780
Posted for fair use......
www.businesstimes.com.sg
Published Wed, Jul 8, 2026 · 04:55 PM
[WASHINGTON] US President Donald Trump said his tentative ceasefire with Iran is over.
“For me, I think it’s over,” he said on Wednesday (Jul 8) in Ankara, sitting next to Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte at the military alliance’s annual summit. “As far as I’m concerned it’s just a waste of time.”
Trump’s remarks came shortly after the US launched a new wave of strikes against Iran and revoked a waiver that allowed the sale of Iranian oil.
The actions, taken in response to recent attacks on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, brought fresh volatility to energy markets and tested an already fragile peace agreement between Washington and Teheran.
“I don’t want to deal with them, but they’re scum,” Trump said. “You know what scum is? They’re scum. They’re sick people, they’re led by sick people, and they’re vicious, violent people, and if they had a nuclear weapon, they’d use it.”
Three ships were attacked in Hormuz, apparently by Iran, which has said repeatedly it will not allow vessels to transit the crucial energy waterway without its permission.
The end of attacks on commercial shipping and the US waiver were central elements of a memorandum of understanding that halted fighting between the US and Iran and set up a 60-day period for negotiations on a broader peace deal.
Together, the developments marked the most serious threat to the interim peace deal. The US blamed Iran for the attacks on shipping, while Teheran said the military strikes and waiver revocation violated the agreement between the two countries.
Oil prices, which touched a peak near US$125 a barrel in late April, had returned toward pre-conflict levels this month on signs of a recovery. But following the Treasury decision, oil prices surged again on Tuesday.
A US official said negotiators would continue to work toward a final deal between Washington and Teheran but even before the most recent escalation, the prospect for a broader agreement remained uncertain.
There are a number of sticking points to resolve, including future tolls on traffic through Hormuz, unfreezing Iranian assets and the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions.
Talks between the US and Iran resumed last week after the two countries traded strikes. But the negotiations were suspended again as Iran conducts a week-long mass funeral for the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated on the first day of the conflict in late February.
Qatar has said the next meeting will be scheduled at the earliest possible time following the funeral processions. Khamenei is set to be buried in his home city of Mashhad on Thursday.
Trump has said he prefers to reach a deal with Iran but has also threatened to renew strikes if that outcome does not materialise. The war has damaged the president’s political standing at a perilous moment for his party, which faces a tough path to retain control of Congress in November mid-term elections.
High energy prices exacerbated voter worries about pocketbook issues and Trump’s approval ratings are near record lows, with voters unhappy over his handling of the economy and the war.
Trump has insisted the end to hostilities will bring Americans quick relief at the pump, and that stock market gains will buoy households. It is unclear though how soon energy flows can return to pre-war levels. BLOOMBERG
Trump says US ceasefire with Iran is ‘over’ after strikes
The remarks follow a new wave of US strikes against Iran Read more at The Business Times.
Trump says US ceasefire with Iran is ‘over’ after strikes
The remarks come after the US launched a new wave of strikes against Iran and revoked a waiver that allowed the sale of Iranian oilPublished Wed, Jul 8, 2026 · 04:55 PM
[WASHINGTON] US President Donald Trump said his tentative ceasefire with Iran is over.
“For me, I think it’s over,” he said on Wednesday (Jul 8) in Ankara, sitting next to Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte at the military alliance’s annual summit. “As far as I’m concerned it’s just a waste of time.”
Trump’s remarks came shortly after the US launched a new wave of strikes against Iran and revoked a waiver that allowed the sale of Iranian oil.
The actions, taken in response to recent attacks on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, brought fresh volatility to energy markets and tested an already fragile peace agreement between Washington and Teheran.
“I don’t want to deal with them, but they’re scum,” Trump said. “You know what scum is? They’re scum. They’re sick people, they’re led by sick people, and they’re vicious, violent people, and if they had a nuclear weapon, they’d use it.”
Three ships were attacked in Hormuz, apparently by Iran, which has said repeatedly it will not allow vessels to transit the crucial energy waterway without its permission.
The end of attacks on commercial shipping and the US waiver were central elements of a memorandum of understanding that halted fighting between the US and Iran and set up a 60-day period for negotiations on a broader peace deal.
Together, the developments marked the most serious threat to the interim peace deal. The US blamed Iran for the attacks on shipping, while Teheran said the military strikes and waiver revocation violated the agreement between the two countries.
Oil prices, which touched a peak near US$125 a barrel in late April, had returned toward pre-conflict levels this month on signs of a recovery. But following the Treasury decision, oil prices surged again on Tuesday.
A US official said negotiators would continue to work toward a final deal between Washington and Teheran but even before the most recent escalation, the prospect for a broader agreement remained uncertain.
There are a number of sticking points to resolve, including future tolls on traffic through Hormuz, unfreezing Iranian assets and the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions.
Talks between the US and Iran resumed last week after the two countries traded strikes. But the negotiations were suspended again as Iran conducts a week-long mass funeral for the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was assassinated on the first day of the conflict in late February.
Qatar has said the next meeting will be scheduled at the earliest possible time following the funeral processions. Khamenei is set to be buried in his home city of Mashhad on Thursday.
Trump has said he prefers to reach a deal with Iran but has also threatened to renew strikes if that outcome does not materialise. The war has damaged the president’s political standing at a perilous moment for his party, which faces a tough path to retain control of Congress in November mid-term elections.
High energy prices exacerbated voter worries about pocketbook issues and Trump’s approval ratings are near record lows, with voters unhappy over his handling of the economy and the war.
Trump has insisted the end to hostilities will bring Americans quick relief at the pump, and that stock market gains will buoy households. It is unclear though how soon energy flows can return to pre-war levels. BLOOMBERG