Page 4 - Iran

The Iran war has cost US $37.5 billion: Why the Pentagon wants billions more | Trump | Oil

The Pentagon says the US-Iran war has already cost America $37.5 billion, and it wants another $87 billion from Congress. But as casualties mount and political opposition grows,

US launches new strikes on Iran as clashes escalate over shipping routes

The US military announced Thursday that it is conducting the 13th night of strikes against Iran as clashes escalate over shipping routes. Earlier Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, potentially widening the Iran war as international oil topped USD 100 a barrel. US Central Command said the latest attacks are designed to "further degrade Iran's ability to threaten civilian mariners and commercial vessels transiting regional waters" as the Americans push to regain control over the Strait of Hormuz and restore the flow of international shipping. Meanwhile, the Houthis threatened to shut down another key trade route, with the world economy already reeling from Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The threat came as Iran and the US have stepped up attacks as they vie for control of the strait, through which a fifth of the world's oil and gas transited in peacetime, setting off a scramble for alternative routes. President Donald Tru

Trump: Will destroy bridge, power plant for each Iranian attack in Strait

4 more tankers changed course in Red Sea; Marco Rubio says still ready for talks but Iran not serious

US identifies 3rd service member believed to be killed in Iranian attack

The US military has confirmed that a third service member is believed to be dead in Friday's attack on a base in Jordan and identified them as Sgt Angel S Rampersad, 28, of New York. The confirmation brings the death toll to 18 US service members killed since the war began. On Monday, the Pentagon identified 1st Lt Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, as the two other soldiers who were killed in Jordan in Friday's attacks. The soldiers were killed by Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks in the first troop deaths from direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war. They were deployed to support a US mission against the Islamic State group, a US Central Command statement said. After the attack, US Central Command announced that two servicemembers were killed and another was missing. The following day, the military command said that troops found unidentified remains and that an examination process to verify the

US completes 11th night of strikes on Iran as attacks overshadow diplomacy

The US military said it completed the 11th night of strikes on Iran early Wednesday as attacks across the Middle East overshadowed diplomatic efforts in Pakistan to salvage an interim ceasefire deal that has collapsed. US Central Command said targets included aircraft hangars and drone storage sites. The newest barrage came after President Donald Trump telegraphed that strikes would be intensifying. Before the latest strikes, Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni visited Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict seeking to revamp diplomacy. But it was unclear what new arrangement might be reached to end the war, which lately has become a battle for control over the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway vital to world energy supplies. Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump gave a dim view on possible talks, saying the US had "no interest in meeting." He signalled that US forces could soon target an area of Iran close to one of its main sites for enriching uranium. With negotiatio

US and Iran dig in over Hormuz, showing limits of intensifying airstrikes

The US and Iran are back to bombing every day in a bid to control the Strait of Hormuz. And neither is backing down, showing the limitations of President Donald Trump's reliance on escalating airstrikes to bend Tehran to his will. While the Trump administration says it is open to diplomacy, Iran so far has refused to loosen its grip over the crucial oil shipping corridor in the Persian Gulf. It is raising questions about the strategy for the next phase of the conflict as intensifying attacks have collapsed an interim ceasefire deal, left additional American troops dead and sent U.S. gasoline prices back up - posing new problems for Republicans ahead of the midterm elections. Even with glimmers of hope for talks, the sides could be headed back to all-out war, with Trump warning that "every time Iran kills an American Soldier" going forward, "they will pay for that killing many times over." The renewed escalations reflect "a fundamental misreading of the Iranian psyche and a lack of .

US attacks Iran for 10th consecutive night, another tanker hit in Hormuz

The British military said a tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the Strait of Hormuz off Oman, the latest assault to target shipping in the strategic waterway. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said the ship reported over the radio it had been hit by an unknown projectile. Two other ships were attacked in the strait over the last day, with Iran' paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claiming those assaults. A fifth of all oil and natural gas that was traded passed through the Strait of Hormuz in peacetime, but Iran has maintained a chokehold on the waterway since the start of the war on Feb. 28. Recent rounds of attacks between Iran and the United States come as the two countries vie for control of the strait. The United States military said late Monday it was carrying out its 10th consecutive night of strikes on Iran in a push to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The renewed bombings followed the death of another American service member, and came after Iran launched

Strait of Hormuz traffic near standstill as US-Iran hostilities escalate

Commercial vessel traffic through the vital route slowed sharply after Iran targeted ships in the waterway, heightening concerns over energy supplies as US strikes on the Islamic Republic continued

Iran tells Houthis to close Red Sea gateway if US targets power network

Iran has asked Yemen's Houthis to prepare to close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait if the US attacks its power infrastructure, threatening another major global oil route

Tehran Diaries: A poignant portrait of life under war, repression in Iran

Since the bombings began, the regime has made concerted attempts to rally the nation

More than 30 people killed in US airstrikes: Iranian govt spokesperson

US airstrikes targeting Iran have killed more than 30 people in "recent days," an Iranian government spokesperson said Wednesday. The comment from Fatemeh Mohajerani came as a Health Ministry spokesperson said more than 260 people had been wounded in overnight strikes in Iran. It wasn't immediately clear what time period Mohajerani was referring to. Iran during the war with the United States and Israel has only sporadically offered full casualty statistics.

US reimposes its blockade on Iran after Tehran's attacks on ships in Hormuz

The US military early Wednesday reimposed a blockade on Iranian ports over Tehran's attacks on ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, sparking new strikes on nations hosting American forces as an interim deal to end the war further unravelled. Days of retaliatory strikes across the Middle East by Iran - and both nations' attempts to vie for control of the waterway through which a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas passes during peacetime - threaten to push the region back to all-out war. The US first imposed the blockade in mid-April and then lifted it in mid-June, a day after signing the interim deal that set a 60-day period for negotiations over issues like Iran's nuclear program, but talks have stalled as fighting over the strait has intensified. When US President Donald Trump announced the return of the blockade Monday, he also said he would impose a 20 per cent fee on ships passing through the strait. But he dropped the plan to collect fees hours before resumi

Trump threatens to strike Iran power plants, bridges next week if no deal

Trump said US would target Iran's power plants and bridges next week unless Tehran resumes negotiations

Tehran targets Jordan with missiles as US reimposes its blockade on Iran

Jordan said Wednesday it shot down three missiles launched by Iran targeting the kingdom. The Iranian attack, earlier claimed by Tehran, comes as the US reimposed a naval blockade on the Islamic Republic over its attacks on ships trying to travel through the Strait of Hormuz. Jordan's military made the statement on the kingdom's state-run Petra news agency.

In Iran, Trump has encountered an opponent he cannot easily dominate

The president is accustomed to forcing other countries to bend to his will, but he is struggling to come up with a strategy to extract Iranian concessions as the cease-fire he brokered collapses

West Asia conflict: India summons Iranian envoy over vessel attacks

India lodged a strong protest with Iran after attacks on two UAE-linked merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz killed one Indian seafarer and injured 10 others

In dire straits, again: Iran attacks deepen Hormuz shipping crisis

On Monday night, Iran hit two oil tankers from the United Arab Emirates with cruise missiles, killing an Indian crew member

India condemns Iran attacks on two vessels carrying 30 Indian sailors

India on Tuesday strongly condemned the attacks on two merchant vessels in Strait of Hormuz, in which one Indian national was killed and 10 others were injured. The Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Iran was summoned this morning by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) and a strong protest against these attacks was lodged with him. India said it is "deeply concerned" by the attacks on two vessels, MT Al Bahiyah and MT Mombasa, during their transit through the strait. "Both the vessels were carrying 30 Indian seafarers, among their combined crew of 46. Of the 12 Indian nationals onboard MT Al Bahiyah, one has tragically lost his life and another has been injured," the MEA said. "Of the 18 Indian nationals onboard MT Mombasa, nine have sustained injuries, including two who are reported to be seriously injured," it said. The MEA said India strongly condemns these attacks and "acts of violence targeting seafarers and disrupting free and safe navigation through international

US-Iran tensions flare up again: Is peace slipping away?

Just weeks after the US and Iran signed a ceasefire, fresh military strikes have pushed the agreement to the brink. The biggest flashpoint is the Strait of Hormuz,

Hormuz transits fall to lowest in a month amid fresh escalation of tensions

Only 73 vessels crossed the Strait of Hormuz on July 10-12 as Iran's closure declaration, military tensions and severe security risks continued to disrupt shipping flows