US President Donald Trump issued fresh threats toward Iran, undermining the fragile ceasefire with Tehran.
Separately, a drone strike caused a fire near a UAE nuclear facility, while Saudi Arabia reported intercepting drones apparently entering its airspace from Iraq, perhaps launched by Iranian proxies. The war is also stifling Qatar’s previously buoyant, LNG-export-driven economy.
The Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed, cutting off 20% of the world’s oil exports, though some countries have negotiated for vessels to traverse the waterway. Iran holds a “vulture’s advantage,” a foreign policy analyst wrote in The Atlantic: It is content to suffer, betting that it can withstand the pain longer than its neighbors.