Axios: 4 pressure points for Iran’s war to monitor this week
Axios website has identified what it called four pressure points regarding the war on Iran that should be monitored this week.
The report, made by Avery Lutz, Axios’ correspondent, as she explained that the war on Iran has entered its third week with inflated costs, a worsening humanitarian crisis, and no diplomatic exit in sight.
Lutz, who covers issues such as US policy, national security, and international relations, including conflicts such as the war with Iran, noted that US President Donald Trump and his aides have mentioned different timelines for ending the war, but a badly hit Iran remains defiant, disrupting trade, and pushing the US to engage deeply in the conflict.
The United States can point to its air superiority and destroy the Iranian navy, but Iran doesn’t need to achieve a military victory in order to harm America and Israel.
Lutz argues that Iran’s strangulation of the Strait of Hormuz increases economic pain, which threatens the risk of an escalation trap.
The report identified 4 paths that should be followed this week, which are as follows:
- Humanitarian repercussions
The humanitarian repercussions needs to be followed, as there is 13 US service members have been killed and about 140 wounded, as of Monday, and more than 1,300 Iranians have been killed and thousands injured, according to the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations, in addition to the Lebanese Health Ministry announcing that 850 Lebanese have been killed since the start of the latest Israeli strikes, while the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration estimates that about one million people have been forced to flee their homes in Lebanon.
Also, Israel and several Gulf states have also recorded deaths.
2- Hurmuz Hurmuz Hurst
The second pressure point is the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, as Trump is trying to form a coalition of countries to reopen the strait, with the goal of announcing it later this week.
Trump claimed on Saturday that the United States and other countries would send warships to reopen commercial shipping, calling on China, France, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom to help.
He later told reporters that he was demanding NATO and other oil-importing countries, including China, to contribute.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Monday: “What does Donald Trump expect a few European frigates in the Strait of Hormuz to do what a powerful US navy can’t? This isn’t our war; we didn’t start it”.
However, large countries have refused to commit to sending warships, including Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece and Australia, while others have indicated they have no immediate plans to send ships.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stressed on Monday that his country and other countries were working on a plan, but it would not be a NATO mission.
3- Attack on Lebanon
The third pressure point relates to the Israeli attack on Lebanon, with Israel on Monday announcing what it described as limited and targeted ground operations in southern Lebanon.
The Lebanese government is deeply concerned that the renewed war, which erupted after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel, could lead to the country’s destruction.
UN experts have warned that the strikes are further exacerbating Lebanon’s displacement crisis.
Axios previously reported that Israel aims to control the entire area south of the Litani River and dismantle Hezbollah’s military structure.
- Costs
The fourth point is the cost of the war, which exceeded $11.3 billion in the first six days, Pentagon officials told lawmakers, according to multiple reports, a figure that is likely to rise as the conflict drags on.
Meanwhile, the prices of gasoline, diesel, and home heating oil in the United States continue to rise.
The global price of Brent crude remained above $100 per barrel as of Monday morning, while the US benchmark price fell to the mid-1990s after surpassing $100 earlier.
