Category Archives: Iran

Forget euphemism, Trump is using unabashed viciousness in his language against Iran

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The Trump administration takes pleasure in deploying dysphemism to describe the killing of Iranians

On 23 March, Donald Trump said that if things didn’t go to his liking in Iran, “we just keep bombing our little hearts out”. A week later the US president told journalists on Air Force One: “You never know with Iran because we negotiate with them and then we always have to blow them up.”

On 4 March, Pete Hegseth squirmed in pleasure as he described “death and destruction from the sky all day long”. Whatever happened to the subtle art of political euphemism?

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Iraqi leaders face balancing act as Iran conflict exposes deep rifts

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Country is torn between those who hope for end to Tehran’s influence and those loyal to Islamic republic

Of all the countries being pulled into the US-Israeli war on Iran, it is Iraq – a country that still bears the emotional and physical scars of the last time the Americans tried to reshape the region by force – where the conflict has exposed some of the deepest rifts.

The war is dividing those who see the attacks on Iran as a way to end Tehran’s longstanding influence over Iraqi politics from the self-declared loyalists of the Islamic republic, and cutting through state institutions, armed forces and Shia Islamist parties.

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Trump warns Tehran ‘more to follow’ after strike destroys Iran’s largest bridge

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Eight people reported killed in attack on newly completed suspension bridge after strike splits structure in half

Donald Trump claimed responsibility for destroying Iran’s largest bridge, a day after he threatened to bomb the country “back to the stone ages” if a deal to end the five-week-long war he started was not reached.

The US president shared footage of part of the newly built 136 metre-high $400m B1 suspension bridge between Tehran and Karaj collapsing dramatically on to the causeway below amid a rising plume of black smoke.

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Coalition of countries discuss ‘every possible measure’ to pressure Iran into reopening strait of Hormuz

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Yvette Cooper hosts virtual summit of more than 40 countries to consider coordinated action in face of closure of vital shipping lane

More than 40 countries gathered to discuss “every possible diplomatic, economic and coordinated measure” to pressurise Iran into reopening the strait of Hormuz, the UK foreign secretary has said.

After chairing a virtual summit on Thursday, Yvette Cooper said coordinated action was needed as Iran’s “reckless strikes” on international shipping and efforts to “hijack the global economy” were hitting nations from across the globe “who played no part in this conflict”.

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‘You have to be serious’: Macron criticises Trump’s mixed messages about Nato and Iran

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Speaking in South Korea, the French president defended the transatlantic alliance and called for return to peace

Emmanuel Macron has sharply criticised Donald Trump’s inconsistent and often contradictory pronouncements on the Iran war and Nato, saying if “you want to be serious” it was better not to come out with something different every day.

“There is too much talk … and it’s all over the place,” the French president said on Thursday during a state visit to South Korea. “We all need stability, calm, a return to peace – this isn’t a show!”

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Trump polled advisers about replacing Tulsi Gabbard as intelligence chief

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Exclusive: Pressure intensifies for Gabbard after president’s displeasure with Iran war testimony

Donald Trump has privately asked cabinet officials in recent weeks whether he should replace his director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, venting frustration that she shielded a former deputy who undercut his rationale for war with Iran, according to two people briefed on the discussions.

It is not clear that Trump will actually fire Gabbard over the episode. Currently, there is no standout candidate to take the job, and advisers have cautioned that creating a high-profile vacancy before a successor is ready could cause unhelpful political distractions.

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Trump claims Iran war ‘nearing completion’ and seeks to justify conflict in prime time address

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Markets sink after president offers little detail on how he intends to wind down conflict over next two to three weeks

Donald Trump used a prime time address to the nation on Wednesday evening to declare the month-long war in Iran a success “nearing completion”, despite a spiraling conflict that has caused economic turmoil across the globe, fractured transatlantic alliances and eroded the president’s approval ratings.

In remarks from the White House, Trump argued that the US’s “little journey” to Iran had nearly accomplished “all of America’s military objectives”, but offered little clarity on how he planned to wind down the conflict over the next “two to three weeks”.

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Reeves criticises Trump for starting Iran war with no ‘clear plan’ to get out of it – as it happened

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This blog is now closed

Starmer says he understands why people are concerned about the cost of living.

He says he has already set out a five-point plan to deal with the crisis.

Just look at what’s happening today. Today your energy bills will be cut because of the action that we took at the budget. And whatever happens in Iran, that price is now fixed until July.

The most effective way we can support the cost of living in Britain is to push for de-escalation in the Middle East, and a reopening of the strait of Hormuz, which is such a vital route for energy.

To that end, we’re exploring each and every diplomatic avenue that is available to us.

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Trump says he is ‘absolutely’ considering withdrawing US from Nato

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The president, a longtime critic of Nato, has stepped up criticism after allies refused to join the US-Israel war on Iran

Donald Trump has said he is “absolutely” considering withdrawing the US from Nato, warning that the matter was “beyond reconsideration” after the refusal of US allies to join the US-Israeli war against Iran.

The president’s threats, his most determined to date, have left the alliance facing its worst crisis in its 77-year history, a former US ambassador has warned.

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UK sends more troops to Gulf amid Trump jibes over British military role

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John Healey says extra deployment is defensive response to ‘expanding threat’ from Iran

The UK is sending more military support to the Gulf, taking the total deployment to 1,000 troops, amid more jibes from Donald Trump about Britain’s refusal to get involved in offensive operations against Iran.

Speaking from Qatar where he met UK troops, the defence secretary, John Healey, said the extra deployment was in response to an “expanding threat” from Iran.

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Pakistan and China propose five-part peace plan for Middle East

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Foreign ministers Ishaq Dar and Wang Yi met in Beijing as Pakistan pushes for peacemaker role

Pakistan and China have released a joint five-part proposal for peace in the Middle East, after Pakistan’s foreign minister flew to Beijing on Tuesday to seek Chinese support for the country’s faltering efforts to negotiate an end to end the war.

The one-day meeting between Ishaq Dar and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, came as Pakistan continues to push for the role of peacemaker between the United States and Iran, even as the war shows little sign of relenting.

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Middle East crisis live: oil spill warning after tanker attacked in Dubai; explosions in Tehran and Jerusalem amid wave of attacks

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Kuwait says fire broke out after Iranian attack on giant tanker and warns of possible oil spill in surrounding waters

Japan and Indonesia have agreed to step up coordination on energy security, Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi said on Tuesday.

“In light of the Iran situation, the strategic importance of resources and energy security is once again being recognized globally. Indonesia is a major resource-rich nation,” Takaichi said alongside Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto after they met for talks in Tokyo.

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Kuwaiti tanker hit by Iranian attack in Dubai port, raising oil spill fears

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Dubai officials said a fire on the Al Salmi tanker had been extinguished and all crew members were safe after drone strike

Iran attacked and set ablaze a fully loaded crude oil tanker at Dubai port’s anchorage, with the strike damaging the vessel’s hull and raising concerns about a possible oil spill.

Dubai authorities said the drone attack caused a fire on board that was extinguished early on Tuesday, hours after the attack was first reported. The attack came hours after Donald Trump warned that the US would obliterate Iran’s energy plants and oil wells if it does not open the strait of Hormuz.

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Islamabad talks signal emergence of new four-nation bloc in Middle East

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Unlikely grouping of Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey steps up efforts to broker ceasefire and curb dominance of Iran and Israel

The meeting on Sunday of the foreign ministers of Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey in Islamabad not only represented the best hope for a ceasefire in Iran but was also the embryo for a new order designed to curb Israeli and Iranian dominance after the war.

Although the four nations have met as a quartet before, the one-day meeting of foreign ministers in Islamabad on Sunday was, in a way, the official opening ceremony of an initiative that is intriguing diplomats.

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What the Houthis’ entry into the Iran war means for the conflict and the wider region

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Fresh attacks on Red Sea shipping would be devastating – but the Iranian proxy has reasons to be cautious

The true significance of the long-awaited entry of Yemen’s Houthis into the Iran war depends on whether the Tehran-backed proxy group is intending to send a few missiles and drones from a distance towards Israel or will instead capitalise on its proximity to the narrow Bab al-Mandab strait to effectively close off the Red Sea to shipping, just as Iran has in effect shut the strait of Hormuz.

The combined effect of both waterways being shut to commercial traffic from countries that neither the Iranians nor Houthis favour would be devastating. Napoleon Bonaparte’s remark that “the policy of a state lies in its geography” has never seemed more apt.

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Iran accuses US of plotting ground assault while publicly seeking talks

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Tehran says it will confront any land attack, as Houthi missiles fired at Israel signal further escalation in region

Iran has warned the US that it is prepared to confront any ground assault, accusing Washington of secretly planning a land attack while publicly seeking talks, as the war that has killed thousands of people and caused the biggest ever disruption to global energy supplies entered its second month.

As efforts to find a negotiated conclusion to hostilities inched forward with a meeting of regional powers in Pakistan, there were signs of further escalation over the weekend as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis entered the conflict for the first time and the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said his country was widening its invasion of southern Lebanon.

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Houthi forces enter Iran conflict with missile attacks on Israeli military sites

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Escalation represents dangerous spread of war and brings threat of even more damage to the global economy

The US-Israeli war with Iran has expanded with the entry of Houthi forces in Yemen, representing a dangerous spread of the conflict and bringing with it the threat of more damage to the global economy.

Pakistan has said it would host a meeting of Middle Eastern powers on Monday in an effort to find a regional approach to ending the conflict. But the talks, which bring together the foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Egypt, did not appear to include any of the warring parties, casting further doubt on persistent US claims of diplomatic progress.

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As US troops sail to Middle East, how likely is Trump to order boots on the ground?

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Secretary of state Marco Rubio repeats administration’s belief that US can achieve its aims without a ground war

Amid tentative White House efforts at diplomacy to end the war in Iran, US troops have also been arriving in the region to deliver what Donald Trump has hoped could be a knockout blow if he can’t negotiate a ceasefire with Tehran.

Thousands of US marines aboard navy amphibious ships from the 31st and 11th expeditionary units have been deployed to the Middle East from Asia. Another 2,000-odd paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne are also being sent to the theatre – they are tasked with deploying worldwide within 18 hours of notification and execute parachute assaults, including against a “defended airfield” to prepare for further ground operations.

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Hundreds of organised protests show resilience of Iranian regime, experts say

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More than 850 public demonstrations of support held since start of war and at least 1,400 arrests, research reveals

Iran’s regime has organised more than 850 public demonstrations of support of the government since the beginning of the war and launched a continuing crackdown on unrest that has led to at least 1,400 detentions, research reveals.

The high number of pro-regime gatherings and the increasing number of detentions underlines the resilience of the Islamic Republic despite a month-long campaign of intensive airstrikes by the US and Israel, experts said.

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Yemen’s Houthis launch first attack on Israel since outbreak of conflict, as Rubio says war to end in ‘weeks’

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Missile fired from Yemen the first since the Iran war began and came hours after the US secretary set a new timeline for the conflict

Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have confirmed that they launched an attack on Israel for the first time since the outbreak of the Israel-US war on Iran, marking their entry to the conflict just hours after Marco Rubio said the US expected to conclude military operations within “weeks, not months”.

While Israel was again hitting targets across Iran’s capital on Saturday, it identified what it said was a missile launched from Yemen. The Houthis said the attack came after continued targeting of infrastructure in Iran, Lebanon, Iraq and the Palestinian territories, adding that their operations would continue until the “aggression” on all fronts ends.

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