The Israeli newspaper “Haaretz” revealed the escalating state of dissatisfaction within Israeli circles with the course of the American war on Iran, considering that Washington has moved away from the goal with which it justified the war, which is to end the Iranian nuclear program, so that the confrontation gradually turned into a struggle over control of the Strait of Hormuz.
The newspaper saw, in an analysis published on Friday, that the administration of US President Donald Trump is not moving towards directing strikes targeting Iran’s missile bases, nuclear facilities, or its enriched uranium stockpile, but rather is focusing on operations it described as “surgical,” the primary goal of which is to increase pressure on Tehran to return it to the negotiating table.
She added that Trump has threatened, if this pressure fails, to target Iran’s energy infrastructure, including power stations and bridges, but implementing such a plan would be unprecedented in scale, and would cause widespread damage to civilians and vital installations, and may also push Iran to target civilian infrastructure in countries of the region.
The newspaper considered that Trump’s recent statements reflect a shift in the goals of the war, noting that the motive has become closer to “revenge” against Iran if it cannot be pushed into negotiations, than to achieving strategic goals related to its nuclear program.
Haaretz also questioned the feasibility of Trump’s calls to resume negotiations, at a time when he had previously announced the collapse of the memorandum of understanding signed between Washington and Tehran, which included 14 items.
The analysis linked the recent escalation to the worsening crisis in the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran targeted oil tankers that used an alternative sea route near the Omani coast, instead of the route supervised by Tehran, in light of a dispute over the interpretation of the terms of the memorandum of understanding related to the management of navigation in the strait.
The newspaper explained that Iran considers the agreement to give it the right to regulate navigation and impose transit fees after the expiration of a transitional deadline, while the United States and the Sultanate of Oman support the establishment of an alternative sea corridor that reduces Iranian influence, which Tehran rejected and considered a violation of the agreement.
She pointed out that the visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi to Muscat did not lead to a settlement, before the region witnessed a new escalation through the launching of missiles that targeted American targets and ships near Oman.
Haaretz concluded that the essence of the conflict is no longer limited to the nuclear file, but rather revolves around sovereignty and control over the Strait of Hormuz, considering that any concession by either party will be viewed as a political defeat, which raises the possibility of the crisis sliding into a broader confrontation, if it is not possible to reach a limited agreement that will bring the two parties back to the negotiating table.
