Iran had activated every lever of regional pressure at its disposal, using Hezbollah in Lebanon, missile attacks on Gulf states, and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz to maximise the cost of the US-Israeli offensive against it. The strategy came into sharp focus on Saturday as Iran launched ballistic missiles at the UAE, continued rocket attacks on Israel, and threatened to strike any Gulf energy facility tied to American interests. The Islamic Republic showed no inclination to back down despite weeks of devastating bombing by US and Israeli warplanes.
The Strait of Hormuz, closed by Iran since hostilities began on February 28, remained the single most consequential pressure point in the conflict. The waterway handles roughly 20 percent of global daily oil and gas shipments, and its continued closure was sending energy prices climbing toward $120 per barrel. Iran’s threat to also strike Fujairah and other Gulf energy hubs added further layers of disruption to markets already stretched thin by weeks of war. Analysts warned that oil at $150 per barrel was a genuine possibility if current trends continued.
US warplanes struck Kharg Island again on Saturday, compounding damage from Friday’s massive assault. President Trump said in public statements the island had been effectively destroyed and hinted at more to come. He also called on China, France, Japan, South Korea, and the UK to contribute warships to a coalition to force the strait open, in what analysts described as the first public admission that the US might need multilateral help. The USS Tripoli and 2,500 additional marines were already en route to reinforce American military options in the region.
Israeli warplanes conducted dozens of raids aimed at dismantling Iran’s missile systems on Saturday. At least 15 people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a factory in Isfahan. Iran continued firing rockets at Israel in return. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Iranian leaders were “desperate and hiding” and that the new supreme leader had been wounded in an earlier strike. Iranian officials confirmed the injury but maintained it was minor. The International Crisis Group assessed the Iranian regime as structurally intact and pursuing a calculated strategy of prolonged conflict.
The war’s human and economic toll was staggering. More than 1,400 Iranians had been killed under relentless bombing. Thirteen Israelis and roughly 20 Gulf residents had also died. Lebanon’s crisis deepened, with 800 killed and 850,000 displaced from Israeli operations against Hezbollah. Six US troops died in a military aircraft crash in Iraq. The US embassy in Baghdad was hit by missiles, and all Americans in Iraq were told to leave. With no ceasefire talks in sight and Trump refusing to give a timeline, the region faced an open-ended conflict with no visible path to resolution.
