By Abdel Bari Atwan
After repeatedly threatening to launch a devastating carpet bombing campaign against all of Iran’s power plants, and giving it only 48 hours to fully open the Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers, US president Donald Trump shamefully backed down from this threat just hours before the deadline. He justified this retreat by claiming that “good and fruitful” talks had taken place with Iran, and that he had therefore ordered an immediate halt to the strikes.
The semi-official Iranian news agency Tasnim quoted a senior Iranian official, who preferred to remain anonymous, denying any negotiations with the US side. The official stated that the message conveyed by the Iranian leadership to various mediators affirmed that “Iran will continue to defend its territory until the necessary deterrence is achieved,” and described Trump’s threats as part of a “psychological war.”
The real reasons that prompted Trump to make this shameful retreat, revealing the state of delirium and collapse he has been experiencing since the beginning of the aggression against Iran, can be summarized in the following points:
First: This retreat, which came less than 48 hours after issuing the ultimatum, is neither new nor surprising. The American president has learned nothing from his “mentor,” Netanyahu, who embroiled him in this aggression against Iran, and before that, in supporting the war of annihilation in the Gaza Strip, except for lying, deception, and exploiting the media to perpetuate them.
Second: Iran’s swift response to these threats came in the form of a pledge to retaliate in kind and bomb all energy facilities and infrastructure in Israel and the Gulf Arab states allied with America.
Third: The missile attack on the oil facilities and refinery in Jaffa three days ago was the first practical application of this response. This was followed by another response to the American aggression against the Iranian Natanz nuclear facility: The bombing of two Israeli cities with two giant hypersonic ballistic missiles, each with a warhead weighing at least a ton. The first city was Dimona, home to the Israeli nuclear reactor, and the second was Arad, where workers and experts at this reactor reside.
Fourth: The immense pressure exerted by the Gulf states on Trump to immediately retract this threat stems from the fact that their oil and gas facilities and desalination plants would be easy and certain targets for any Iranian retaliation, given their geographical proximity. Furthermore, retaliatory attacks on American bases in their territories have continued unabated since the beginning of the war.
Fifth: Trump hasn’t strayed from his background as a businessman and real estate broker. He demonstrates his loyalty to his associates, children, and in-laws who live off brokerage and profit-making by any means, amassing millions and billions in their bank accounts. These threats led to a rise in oil prices by more than $20 and gas prices by 30 percent. It’s certain they reaped substantial profits, perhaps in coordination with him, due to their speculation.
Sixth: The war has entered its 25th day without the aggression achieving any of its objectives: Toppling and dismantling the Iranian regime, and forcing it to retract its decision to control navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, through which 21 million barrels of oil pass daily. The only ones harmed by this closure are the Western world and its economy, and the Gulf oil and gas producing states allied with Washington, most of which haven’t exported a single barrel since the start of the war.
Seventh: The “peace through strength” theory that President Trump boasts about has failed miserably so far and has backfired. To date, two American aircraft carriers have been damaged: The Abraham Lincoln, which was struck by a ballistic missile, and the Gerald R. Ford, which was hit by another missile, causing a fire that forced it to be towed to the Greek island of Crete for repairs. The false pretext given was a fire in the laundry room on board—a justification that even the most gullible people, including those like their leader Trump, wouldn’t be believed.
They wanted a short war with a swift and clean victory, while Iran wanted a long, attritional regional war. Iran has achieved a resounding victory and holds the upper hand, at least so far. The losses of the aggressors, particularly the Israelis and Americans, are now estimated in the billions daily. The scale of destruction we witnessed in Tel Aviv, Haifa, and most recently in Dimona and Arad is the most compelling evidence of this. Even more serious is the moral defeat, with more than seven million Israeli settlers living in shelters and tunnels day and night for the past 24 days of this aggression.
It is striking that the arrogant and foolish Trump found no one but Israel to praise for standing with him in this war after NATO and all European countries, his traditional allies and partners in all previous wars, abandoned him.
Perhaps it is worth reminding Trump, in conclusion, that Israel stood with him because he is fighting its war, not America’s or the Western world’s, and that it was Israel’s leadership that embroiled him in this aggression. Trump has lost his credibility, his war, most of his allies, if not all of them, and the prestige of his country and its global standing as a superpower. The only thing he gained was the satisfaction of “Israel,” or rather, its extremist right-wing terrorist government. Congratulations on this great achievement. We are waiting for his next threat and his shameful retreat from it, and our wait will certainly not be long.
The author is the Editor of the Arabic Al Rai Al Youm website and reprinted crossfirearabia.com
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