Tag: Strait of Hormuz

That Damn Strait!

The Strait of Hormuz has been in the news almost daily so I decided to take a look at some history (you guys know I cannot pass up a history lesson)….

I found an interesting piece about the UK and their involvement in the region in the 70s….(I hope some of my UK readers will help shed some light on this piece of history)….

Previously secret military files reveal links between the use of torture by British forces in Oman and Northern Ireland during the 1970s.

An army major who led the worst of these interrogations in the Gulf would later earn a senior role in a secretive intelligence unit in Northern Ireland at the height of the Troubles.

Although that unit colluded with paramilitaries, the officer involved appears to have been promoted to MI5’s most senior role in Northern Ireland.

The interrogations done by his men in Oman were more extensive than previously reported and would be considered illegal by today’s standards.

They were employed as part of a counter-insurgency campaign waged for Sultan Qaboos, a pro-British dictator installed in Oman after an MI6-backed coup in 1970.

U.K. support for Qaboos was driven by a desire to secure oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, which is flanked by Iran on one side and the disputed Musandam peninsula to the south.

British planners helped Qaboos annex Musandam in 1970, creating an Omani exclave separated from the rest of the country and surrounded by the Trucial States (which are now the United Arab Emirates).

Britain inserted elite SAS troops into Musandam in December 1970 to round up suspected rebels.

Declassified has previously found that while one member of the Shihuh tribe was being questioned, he refused to give up his ceremonial dagger and was shot in the arm, shoulder and neck.

It can now be revealed that another detainee who allegedly escaped in March 1971 was shot in the back and shoulder.

Regarding the incident, Geoffrey Arthur — British political resident for the Persian Gulf — told Conservative Foreign Secretary Alec Douglas-Home:

“We might also eventually have to face questions as to why such persons had been detained and/or interrogated by British forces at Sharjah, but we would naturally try to prevent this aspect getting out.”

When Britain Used Torture to Control the Strait of Hormuz

These are events we knew nothing about (that is why it is called a ‘state secret’)….but it is fascinating to shine a light on this portion of the region’s history.

I hope my UK readers may have some further information that I do not have and if anything needs corrected please do just that.

Side Note:  the war is costing average Americans dearly….

By late September, the total cost of the higher gas and diesel prices triggered by President Trump’s war against Iran exceeded $103 billion, according to my organization’s analysis of the federal government’s energy data. And those higher prices aren’t showing any sign of slowing. If current trends hold, the price tag by the end of this year will approach $180 billion.

For the average household, that comes out to $750 extra so far, and that figure is on pace to top $1,300 by year’s end.

For a family of four with two drivers, those costs are even higher, topping $1,000 already and slated to be over $1,700 by the end of the year if the war continues. Our interactive tool, online at itep.org/iran-war-fuel-cost, lets you punch in your region and household size to get a sense of how much your family’s costs are rising.

There you go….is it not about time to end this stupidity?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

More Bad News For Donny

I am sure that our Clueless Leader will somehow try to spin the latest news out of the Middle East as some sort of win for his lunatic strategies….

Looks like Iran and its proxies now control the east side and the west of the Strait of Hormuz….not a promising picture.

Recently in Yemen the Houthis attacked and won a vital port on the Strait of Hormuz….now Iran and its clients are controlling a lot of the traffic that will supposedly travel through the Strait…

A conflict that once looked containable is now spilling across borders in ways that damaging to both President Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, writes Gideon Rachman in the Financial Times. Iran’s allies, particularly Yemen’s Houthi militia, have opened a new front by seizing much of Yemen’s Red Sea coast and striking Saudi energy infrastructure, including the kingdom’s key East-West pipeline. Those attacks threaten the backup routes meant to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, raising the risk of sharper disruptions to global oil supplies just as Western countries head into winter.

“The US-Iran war can be seen as a three-dimensional conflict,” writes Rachman. “The first dimension is the battlefield. The second is the economic conflict. The third is the battle of narratives. All three are linked and currently turning against the US.” Iran has shown it can withstand initial strikes, hit US partners, and choke energy routes, while its authoritarian system insulates leaders from public anger in a way Trump cannot match if gasoline prices climb. Meanwhile, Trump reportedly rebuffed MBS’ push for rapid strikes on the Houthis, a sign Washington grasps the limits of force against battle-hardened local actors.

A Washington Post analysis by Gerry Shih and Sammy Westfall similarly argues that the Houthis’ rapid takeover of the Bab al-Mandab Strait late last week might be Iran’s biggest victory of the conflict so far. Friday was “the first day that Iran really started winning the war,” one Yemeni official tells the newspaper. The sentiment is echoed by Dennis Citrinowicz of the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv: “This is a major, almost unprecedented, strategic achievement for Iran and the Houthis.”

This will effect the Saudis mostly….and as of this writing their oil traffic is all but stopped.  What does this mean….probably very little for they have been bombing the crap out of Yemen for years and yet it has been ineffective.

I wonder if Israel will want a piece of this action?

Of course they will.

And since they will be given a fresh batch of American bombs it seems inevitable.

Just so you know….

The Trump administration is planning to move forward with a massive military aid package for Israel that will include 40,000 2,000-pound bombs, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, as the US continues to support Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza and its wars and occupations in the West Bank, Lebanon, and Syria.

The report said the sale, paid for with US taxpayer dollars, will include 20,000 MK-84s and 20,000 BLU-117s, each weighing 2,000 pounds. It will be funded by the State Department’s Foreign Military Finance program, under which the US provides foreign governments money to purchase US weapons.

(antiwar.com)

If our stockpiles are so low where will we get these ‘extra’ bombs?

Fresh supply of destruction on its way….Israel thumps its chest and pleases Donny’s bloodlust.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered “Israel’s services” to countries in the Arabian Peninsula and has expressed a willingness to participate in a “comprehensive war” against Ansar Allah, the Houthi movement in Yemen, Lebanese media have reported.

The report, by Al-Akhbar editor Ibrahim al-Amin, said that Netanyahu was pressing Israel’s security establishment and military to prepare for possible action against Iran and Hezbollah.

The proposed Israeli role was part of a “wider regional effort” to counter the Houthis and the threat to shipping through the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandeb, one of the world’s main maritime corridors, Israeli media said.

But there is a caveat…. Israel was unlikely to rush into an active military role because of concern that the Houthis could resume missile and drone attacks against Israel.

That thought will demand the US take a larger roll in Yemen….just what this country needs an expansion of our deadly interventions.

Anything missing?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

 

Restore Oil Flow Without Hormuz

The big deal these days is Donny and his delusional idea for the Strait of Hormuz but none of them will restore the flow of oil….is there answer to some sort of restoration?

This article covers the possibilities and god knows oil companies do not want to go without their money maker….

The largest global oil shock on record has catapulted U.S. gasoline prices above $4 a gallon, rekindled inflation and set the stage for November’s midterm elections.

It all traces to fighting in a narrow strip of water thousands of miles away. Iran’s near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz choked off a trade route responsible for about 20% of global oil supply, or nearly 21 million barrels of oil each day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Agency. A U.S. blockade of Iranian ships deepened the crude shortage.

On-again, off-again negotiations have shown little sign of a breakthrough, encouraging oil producers and Gulf nations to seek out other trade routes, some of which are already transporting millions of barrels each day.

Those alternatives, in theory, could eventually restore most of the lost oil flow and provide relief at the pump, some analysts told ABC News, but construction would take several years and require major investment. Still, they said, the approach may offer a durable fix, heading off future flareups in the Strait.

“You’ve already got some projects in the works. I don’t see any turning back,” Tom Seng, a professor of energy finance at Texas Christian University, told ABC News. “Nobody wants to get stung without a solution again.”

Shipping traffic in the Strait has declined sharply since the outbreak of war in Iran, according to oil data company Kpler. An average of about 13 ships crossed the Strait each day last week, the firm said in a post on X, down from more than 100 ships per day before the recent conflict.

https://abcnews.com/Business/gas-prices-fall-companies-build-oil-routes-bypass/story

The pipeline idea is a fanciful one….it will go through some unstable areas to make it to market….and then how will they secure the pipeline from attacks that will stymie oil flow?

Let me guess….the US military will provide security for these operations, right?

I think this is a bad idea….and if instigated would come back to bite us in the ass.

What do you guys think of this ‘plan’?

On a side note….there is talk of after the war with Iran that US would draw down its presence in the region….

The US military is considering reducing its military presence in the Persian Gulf, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, as many of its bases in the region have been badly damaged by Iranian attacks.

Many of the US bases in the Gulf had been evacuated before the US and Israel launched the bombing campaign against Iran on February 28 due to their vulnerability, and some have been essentially abandoned following heavy Iranian attacks.

The Post report said that the damage to US bases in the Gulf has “prompted a once-in-a-generation chance for the Pentagon to reconsider its presence in the region” and that the Pentagon had already signaled it may not rebuild its Gulf bases to how they were before.

Sources told the paper that Adm. Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command (CENTCOM), has been involved in discussions about the future of the US military presence in the region and supports holding deliberations on potentially moving troops west from the Persian Gulf.

Notably, a pullback of US troops from the Persian Gulf has been one of Iran’s conditions for a deal to end the conflict. Iranian officials have frequently said that they believe this war will lead to a US “retreat” from the region.

(antiwar.com)

Does anyone think oil companies will allow this to take place?

I don’t.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

That Pesky Waterway

Since I am an old fart and dearly love history and using it show that not much changes over the years….I thought yet another lesson for those that are young and may not be aware of any similarities.

Most by now are familiar with our mash-up with Iran and that the waterway in this conflict, Strait of Hormuz, is a vital route for that flow of black gold….the sticking point is who will control this vital trade route.

Been there before.

The year is 1956, Ike was president and Israel was at war with it’s neighbors (sound familiar)….and it began….

The Israelis struck first on October 29, 1956. Two days later, British and French military forces joined them. Originally, forces from the three countries were set to strike at once, but the British and French troops were delayed.

…

The response of President Dwight Eisenhower and his administration was measured. It warned the Soviets that reckless talk of nuclear conflict would only make matters worse, and cautioned Khrushchev to refrain from direct intervention in the conflict.

However, Eisenhower and Secretary of State John Foster Dulles also issued stern warnings to the French, British and Israelis to give up their campaign and withdraw from Egyptian soil. Eisenhower was upset with the British in particular for not keeping the United States informed about their intentions.

The United States threatened all three nations with economic sanctions if they persisted in their attack. The threats did their work: British and French forces withdrew by December, and Israel finally bowed to U.S. pressure, relinquishing control over the canal to Egypt, which reopened the Suez Canal canal in March 1957.

(history.com)

This all rings similar to the Strait thing that Donny is trying hard to control….without much success….

The Suez crisis provides the clearest example. In 1956, Egypt’s president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, nationalized the Suez Canal Company, displacing the British- and French-controlled corporation that had operated one of the world’s most important commercial arteries. Britain and France regarded nationalization not merely as an economic injury but as a strategic humiliation and, together with Israel, invaded Egypt.

President Dwight Eisenhower refused to support them. After rejecting the Anglo-French invasion, Eisenhower’s administration did not make restoration of British or international ownership a condition for accepting Egypt’s continued administration of the canal. Instead, Washington opposed the invasion and pressed for a diplomatic arrangement that would preserve international access. The applicable legal regime emphasized the canal’s free use by ships of all countries on equal terms, while leaving Egypt responsible for administering and defending the waterway.

Egyptian control was not the same as unrestricted Egyptian discretion. The distinction was crucial. Washington could accept Egyptian sovereignty over the canal while insisting that sovereignty be exercised within rules guaranteeing nondiscriminatory passage. The overriding American interest was not which flag flew over the canal authority, but whether the canal remained open under internationally accepted rules.

A crucial detail that should not be overlooked: Egypt at the time was not an American ally, whereas France and the UK were. Indeed, Egypt was at the time closely aligned with the Soviet Union though not formally allied with Moscow. Washington nevertheless accepted continued Egyptian administration of the canal rather than seeking to reverse nationalization, provided freedom of navigation was preserved.

https://original.antiwar.com/trita-parsi/2026/08/05/before-hormuz-there-was-suez-what-trump-can-learn-from-eisenhower/

Donny needs to open that aging mind to reality….as if….

But nope he decided to do what he always does….act like a buffoon…..

President Trump apparently has a new target for American expansion: one of the world’s most strategic shipping chokepoints. Speaking on Long Island on Friday, the president said, “Pretty soon, I will be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” even though the narrow waterway between Iran and Oman is not under US sovereignty. He offered no explanation for how Washington could claim ownership of the passage, which is bordered by Iran to the north and Oman to the south, the Hill reports. He also claimed Iran “is being very badly defeated” at the moment, USA Today reports.

Roughly one-fifth of global oil and gas moves through the Strait of Hormuz, now closed amid a six-month war between the US and Iran that has driven up energy prices. Trump has repeatedly asserted that the US “controls” the strait and has twice ordered a naval blockade there, insisting on American primacy over oil shipments. “No ships get through unless we want them to,” he claimed Friday. Iran has rejected those assertions; its Persian Gulf Strait Authority wrote on X this week that whoever claims ownership “does not change the reality: the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and will not be reopened until Iran’s conditions are accepted.” Al Jazeera‘s take is that Trump is “overstating” the amount of US control over the strait.

What an arrogant ass.

In case you want to know….the peace deal runs out today….

Oil tankers are staying put as a US-Iran ceasefire runs out of time. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which handles roughly 20% of the world’s oil, slowed sharply over the weekend ahead of Monday’s expiration of a 60-day truce, with no replacement deal in sight, reports CNBC. Only five cargo ships sailed through on Saturday and none on Sunday, down from 31 a week earlier, according to Reuters. Overall traffic is off about 90% from prewar levels.

As for the peace talks, a senior US official describes the situation as “static” to Politico. Key sticking points include Iran’s demand for compensation and the logistics of how ships will transit the strait when the war is over. Iran’s foreign minister said there is currently “not anything like a ceasefire” and no direct talks with Washington, though Qatar and Pakistan are relaying messages. The war of words has continued: President Trump last week suggested he might declare the strait US territory, while an Iranian deputy foreign minister responded that it will remain under Iran’s control.

What will our Dear Donny do?

This is good stuff for us that like to blog.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Conflict End Run?

Donny has been playing grab ass with Iran for months now….it is an on again off again then back on conflict….lots of chest thumping like a sex crazed primate and lots of international chaos….not to mention my grocery bill going through the roof.

In the center of this war, excluding the magical hold the Israel has on Donny, is the Strait of Hormuz….where a lot of oil must travel to get to market.

In the silence of the night two players in this conflict pull an end run on Donny….

Oil prices fell and stocks climbed into record territory on Tuesday after US Treasury chief Scott Bessent said a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was expected “today or tomorrow,” reports the Wall Street Journal. Not much is confirmed about the deal, though the New York Times reports that Iran and Oman are close to hammering out an agreement that would route incoming ships through an Iran-controlled channel and outgoing vessels near Oman. The nations would share a “service fee”—not a toll, but that may be a matter of semantics— from traveling ships to cover security and environmental costs.

The Times notes that getting oil and cargo moving again would ease market pressure and deliver a badly needed political win for Trump, with a catch: The deal still being worked out appears to give Tehran more leverage over the international waterway than it had before the war began. As analyst Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group puts it, Trump now faces a choice between “an unwinnable war and an unpalatable peace.”

Those “service fees” or tolls for ships transiting the Strait. Muscat and Tehran will split the funds. Additionally, Tehran will have full control over inbound traffic while Iran and Oman will have joint control over outbound shipping.

What Donny will not get his cut?

This should not fly well at the next cabinet meeting.

But believe it or not Donny has something to say….

U.S. President Donald Trump said a deal on the Strait of Hormuz could come as early as Wednesday or Thursday, while Iran and Oman inched toward an agreement to reopen the critical waterway and potentially help bring an end to the war.

Trump was asked by reporters traveling with him in California about a report on the Axios news site that an announcement on the Strait of Hormuz could be made on Wednesday.

“It could happen. Tomorrow or the next day,” he said, speaking on Tuesday evening California time, which was already Wednesday morning in the Middle East. “A lot of progress has been made.”

(apnews.com)

Positive right?

But if Donny holds true to form he will screw this up as well.

Is the lack of long range missiles fueling his acceptance?

Will Israel have something to say?

Stay tuned I am sure there will be more to this story.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Threaten Another Ally

Our Little Donny is good at only one thing….threatening allies to get his way.  With the Iran thing not going as well as he lied about he now has something to say to Oman…..the nation on the other side of the Strait of Hormuz.

President Trump on Wednesday said the US would “blow up” the country of Oman if it doesn’t “behave,” a threat made when asked if he would accept a short-term deal that involved Iran and Oman jointly controlling the Strait of Hormuz.

“No, the strait’s got to be opened to everybody, it’s international waters. Nobody’s going to control it. We’ll watch over it, but nobody’s going to control it. That’s part of the negotiation,” Trump told reporters while hosting a cabinet meeting at the White House.

“Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we’ll have to blow them up. They understand that they’ll be fine,” the president added.

Iranian media reported last month that Iran’s initial proposal to end the war with the US involved charging a fee for ships transiting the strait, with the revenue split between Iran and Oman, which both have coasts along the waterway, and Iranian officials have held talks with their Omani counterparts on the issue.

Initially described as a “toll,” the issue is now being framed in different terms. “There is no toll. We need to pay attention to the words we use. We’re not after money. Iran and Oman need to create protocols for the safe passage of ships, and this will be based on international laws,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said this week.

“It’s only natural that the services we provide, like navigation and the preservation of the ecosystem of the Strait, the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman will have costs. These should not be considered tolls. Iran and Oman are being responsible in our efforts and I hope we will reach a conclusion soon,” Baghaei added.

Iran is unlikely to back down on the issues in its negotiations with the US as it seeks the funds to pay for reconstruction after the US-Israeli bombing campaign.

(antiwar.com)

The bully has spoken.

Will Oman acquiesce or will they show the middle finger to the loud mouth?

This is fun watching an idiot make a bigger idiot of himself.

I Read,  I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

This Is Who Controls The WH?

I for one do not think that Donny is smart enough to make his own decisions and stupid enough not to take advice from those in the know.

But a story I read tells me all I need to know about who tells Dumb Donny what to do in the Middle East….

NBC News reported on Wednesday that President Trump quickly ended the US military operation to “guide” commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz due to backlash from the US’s Gulf Arab allies.

The report said that the abrupt reversal came after Saudi Arabia was caught off guard by Trump’s announcement of what he dubbed “Project Freedom,” and Riyadh informed the US that it would not allow the US military to fly aircraft from Prince Sultan Airbase or fly through Saudi airspace to support the effort.

Israel’s i24 reported on Thursday, citing Gulf sources, that Saudi Arabia would restrict US military access until the US “provides proper protection” from Iranian attacks. During the short-lived Project Freedom, the UAE came under missile and drone attacks, and the US downplayed the attacks and didn’t respond.

…

For its part, Iran’s military denied responsibility for the attacks in the UAE, which hit oil infrastructure, but sources told Iranian media that they were retaliation for the US launching the new military operation.

The NBC report said that a phone call between President Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman did not resolve the issue of Riyadh’s restrictions on US military access. It also said that the US spoke with Qatar and Oman only after Trump announced the military operation.

“The problem with that premise is that things are happening quickly in real time,” a Saudi source told NBC when asked if the announcement of Project Freedom took Riyadh by surprise. A White House official appeared to deny the report, insisting that “regional allies were notified in advance.”

(antiwar.com)

So the prince gets butt hurt and tells Donny to do what he is told…..and Donny bows and takes it.

This whole scenario in the Middle East these days is disgusting and non-essential to the security of the region.  The only problems are that of Saudi Arabia and Israel…..when those two problems are eliminated the safer the region will become.

We now know who makes Donny’s Middle East policies.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Iran: Minute By Minute Brain Farts

Just about two days ago Donny and Lil Marco turned again and is ending the so-called blockade….

President Trump says that he has paused the US effort to guide stranded vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz to finalize an Iran deal. Trump announced the decision in a Truth Social post on Tuesday evening, saying he was pausing the effort for a short period to give space for US efforts to finalize a settlement with Iran to end the war, the AP reports.

  • “Based on the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran, we have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom (The Movement of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed,” Trump wrote.
  • The announcement came after military leaders and Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted on Tuesday that a ceasefire in the Middle East was still holding and that—while the conflict is not resolved—the initial major US military operation against Iran has concluded. Rubio told reporters at the White House that “Operation Epic Fury,” the attack the US and Israel mounted on Iran on Feb. 28, “is concluded” because its objectives were met, the AP reports. Rubio said recent clashes with Iran related to US efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz were “defensive in nature.”

Which is good news but then less than a day later Donny makes this announcement….

President Trump on Wednesday suggested that a deal to end the Iran war is indeed in the works—but he also warned Iran of new strikes should it balk. If Iran “agrees to give what has been agreed to,” the war will wrap up, wrote Trump on Truth Social, without providing specifics. But if they renege, bombing will resume “at a much higher level,” he added. His comments followed reports in Axios and Reuters that a peace deal between US and Iranian negotiators was imminent.

We will close this very soon,” a source in Pakistan tells Reuters. The news sent oil prices down, with Brent crude falling 10% to below $100 a barrel before leveling off after Trump’s warning, per the Wall Street Journal. It was back at $103 more recently. Earlier Wednesday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard suggested it would soon allow commercial traffic to resume in the Strait of Hormuz if the US “threats” were over, notes Reuters. But nothing is certain: The New York Times reports that a spokesman for Iran’s parliamentary national security downplayed the Axios report about a one-page peace memorandum, describing it as “more a list of American wishes than a reality.”

What are these yahoos doing?

TACO will find a way to end this…..it is costing $72 billion in 60 days…..Donny needs top look like he is in charge (a wishful fallacy)….so he will cave and tell us how smart and clever he was to end this stupidity.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

WTF? Confusion And More Confusion

Donny made a big deal out of the US escorting ships trapped  by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz….that was just a couple of days ago…..and now that operation will be paused…..

President Trump said in a Tuesday night post on Truth Social that the US military operation to “guide” commercial ships out of the Strait of Hormuz, which he has dubbed “Project Freedom,” has been paused.

“Based on the request of Pakistan and other Countries, the tremendous Military Success that we have had during the Campaign against the Country of Iran and, additionally, the fact that Great Progress has been made toward a Complete and Final Agreement with Representatives of Iran, we have mutually agreed that, while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect, Project Freedom (The Movement of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz) will be paused for a short period of time to see whether or not the Agreement can be finalized and signed,” the president wrote.

In response to Trump’s announcement, an Iranian official told Drop Site News reporter Jeremy Scahill that the post was “riddled with falsehoods” and that Trump’s operation to “liberate” the Strait of Hormuz “failed completley.” The official also reaffirmed Tehran’s position that direct talks won’t happen until the US blockade is lifted.

“We will not participate in direct negotiations until the United States formally announces the end of the blockade,” the official told Scahill.

Pakistan has passed messages between the US and Iran, and late last week, Tehran had presented a new proposal to the US that, according to Iranian media, was focused on bringing a permanent end to the conflict and other hostilities in the region, including the Israeli war in Lebanon. Iran said on Sunday that it was reviewing a US response to the proposal, but then Trump announced “Project Freedom.”

Scahill said that the US did send a message to Iran through Pakistan, “indicating the US does not intend to carry out direct military action in the Persian Gulf and is seeking direct talks with Iran.” He also noted that the US and Israel had attacked Iran twice before while the US was claiming it was negotiating.

Trump’s announcement came after Iran made clear it would respond to US attempts to “guide” commercial ships out of the Strait of Hormuz and the two sides exchanged fire on Monday.

(antiwar.com)

Typical Donny policy…..keep farting around until something breaks.

This is pathetic policies….but then most of Donny’s policies are either pathetic or disgusting or both.

I Read, I Write, You KNow

“lego ergo scribo”