Iran continues to insist on collecting payments in Hormuz as compensation for war damage. Israel is preparing three lines of attack targeting energy facilities, research institutes and senior officials. The most important of them, Mohammad Vahidi, has already evaded more than one assassination attempt.
This piece was written at the start of trading in New York and should be read in that context. Even so, more than anything else, it reflects the mood on Wall Street at the opening bell.
US officials say targets struck on Iran’s Kharg Island included bunkers, a radar station and ammunition depots. Trump: “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”
With about a day left before the deadline expires, the US president held a marathon of calls with regional leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. At the center of the talks was the possibility of a significant escalation in the fighting against the Iranian regime.
The four are being investigated by the Shin Bet and police. It is the third case involving Israelis allegedly working for the Iranian regime to be made public in the past 24 hours.
