Iran, Israel, and the U.S.: A war spiraling into strategic destruction

Rapidly, America, Israel, and Iran are moving from the brink to the abyss itself, in a war that has surpassed the unimaginable and is heading toward catastrophic, unpredictable scenarios—leaving the entire world, not just the Middle East, holding its breath.

There are developments on the ground pointing to serious danger. U.S. President Donald Trump underscored this by warning Iran on Saturday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to international navigation within 48 hours, or else “the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!” Iran responded by warning that “if its oil and energy infrastructure is attacked, all U.S. energy, information technology, and desalination infrastructure in the region will be targeted.”

Earlier, new U.S. strikes targeted Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility, which had already been hit during the 12-day war in June. Iran responded with a missile strike impacting the city of Dimona, 13 kilometers from the Dimona nuclear reactor, and then also targeted the city of Arad in southern Israel. Israel, in turn, launched new attacks on Tehran, as well as on Iranian ports in the Caspian and Bushehr, along with other infrastructure.

This comes as thousands of U.S. Marines are being deployed to the Middle East, amid expectations that Iran’s Kharg Island could be targeted for an American landing to pressure Tehran into reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Early Saturday, the U.S. announced it had intercepted two Iranian missiles over the U.S.-British Diego Garcia base in the Indian Ocean, though Tehran denied launching them. Later, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards’ Quds Force warned that the Houthis in Yemen would close the Bab al-Mandab Strait in the Red Sea if the U.S. occupied Kharg Island.

The escalating tensions were briefly disrupted by a leak from the news site “Axios,” reporting that the United States is considering opening a diplomatic channel with Iran if the Iranian regime meets a series of conditions. These include zero uranium enrichment, handing over 450 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60%, stopping the development of missiles with ranges exceeding 1,000 kilometers, and halting support for Iran’s regional proxies. These conditions are similar to those the Trump administration presented to Iran before the war.

Iran is not expected to agree to these conditions, which it had previously rejected before the war. It is currently focusing its demands on any agreement that includes guarantees against new wars by the U.S. or Israel, as well as securing compensations and arrangements that do not exclude Tehran’s allies in the region.

While diplomatic solutions appear almost nonexistent, the trend is leaning toward escalation. After Trump urged allies to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, framing them as beneficiaries of this vital energy passage, he now seems to have abandoned this request, opting instead to target Iranian energy facilities. Such a major development could trigger a sharp surge in oil and gas prices.

The escalation that Trump is pushing aims to pressure Iran into meeting his conditions, but it also risks driving the war into deeper levels of conflict with negative impacts on the global economy. This includes rising gasoline prices within the United States and growing criticism of a war backed by only a small segment of public opinion.

In other words, the war has entered a phase of mutual strategic destruction.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed by the writers are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Annahar.

Iran, Israel, and the U.S.: A war spiraling into strategic destruction

Iran, Israel, and the U.S.: A war spiraling into strategic destruction

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