Iran & The Gulf

Abu Dhabi authorities activated air defenses after Iranian fire; a day earlier, an energy facility near Fujairah was heavily damaged and three foreign workers were wounded.

Pezeshkian, cut out of the decision to strike the UAE with missiles and drones, sought an emergency meeting with the Supreme Leader's son to halt further attacks on Gulf states.

Administration officials told The Wall Street Journal that the president had struggled for days with conflicting impulses over how to deal with Iran. People close to him said they believed Trump would carry out a major strike inside Iran.

Significantly damaging the program would require destroying or removing enriched uranium stockpile. International Atomic Energy Agency: Existing stockpile could be enough for up to 10 bombs. 

The US and Israel are weighing a military response against missile launchers and energy facilities in Iran following the attack on the UAE. As CENTCOM reports the sinking of Iranian attack boats, the Israeli Air Force has returned to its highest state of readiness. Despite reports that Iron Dome was involved in interceptions in the Gulf, Israel remains tense, and wating. 

Abu Dhabi says three missiles were intercepted by air defense systems and another fell into the sea.Authorities issued a warning of a missile attack and later released an all-clear announcement. Local residents reported explosions in the Jebel Ali area of Dubai.

Iran said it fired missiles at a US ship and hit it, but officials later corrected the statement and said it was unclear whether any hit had been recorded. The US Navy began escorting ships through the waterway after Trump announced a special humanitarian operation.

US military to launch “Project Freedom” in the to escort vessels trapped in the Persian Gulf during the war out of the Strait of Hormuz. “For the good of Iran, the Middle East, and the United States, we have told these Countries that we will guide their Ships safely out of these restricted Waterways,” Trump wrote.

Iran’s draft plan, reported by Al Jazeera, includes reopening the Strait of Hormuz, freezing uranium enrichment for up to 15 years and launching a regional security dialogue in exchange for sanctions relief and an end to the blockade.

Trump has notified Congress that hostilities have ended, but diplomatic officials tell Israel Hayom that the naval blockade on oil exports will continue for months. While Washington is betting on the regime’s internal collapse, Tehran refuses to budge on the nuclear issue and will have to contend with a failing currency and oil wells being shut down.