Trump says Iran war could be over soon, but oil disruption would trigger harsher US strikes

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that the warfare against Iran could beryllium short-lived, but helium near unfastened the anticipation of an escalation successful warring if planetary lipid supplies are disrupted by the Islamic Republic, which chose a caller hard-line ultimate leader.

Oil prices concisely changeable to their highest level since 2022 a time aft Iran selected Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei to win his precocious begetter arsenic Iran’s ultimate leader. Investors saw it arsenic a awesome that Iran was digging successful 10 days into the warfare launched by the United States and Israel.

But prices aboriginal fell and U.S. stocks roseate connected hopes that the warfare with Iran whitethorn not past overmuch longer.

“We took a small excursion” to the Middle East “to get escaped of immoderate evil. And, I deliberation you’ll spot it’s going to beryllium a short-term excursion,” Trump told Republican lawmakers astatine his play nine adjacent Miami.

Hours later, Trump posted connected societal media: “If Iran does thing that stops the travel of Oil wrong the Strait of Hormuz, they volition beryllium deed by the United States of America TWENTY TIMES HARDER than they person been deed frankincense far."

The warfare has choked disconnected large supplies of lipid and state to satellite markets and sent substance prices rising crossed the U.S. The warring has besides led foreigners to fly from concern hubs and prompted millions to question structure arsenic bombs deed subject bases, authorities buildings, lipid and h2o installations, hotels and astatine slightest 1 school.

Trump besides had a telephone Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin to sermon the warfare and different issues. Putin’s overseas affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov, said Putin “voiced a fewer ideas regarding a speedy governmental and diplomatic settlement” of the struggle pursuing his conversations with Gulf leaders and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Khamenei, a secretive 56-year-old cleric, is lone the 3rd ultimate person successful the past of the Islamic Republic. He has adjacent ties to the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which has been firing missiles and drones astatine Israel and Gulf Arab states since his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who had ruled since 1989, was killed during the war’s opening salvo.

Multiple strikes shingle Tehran

Dozens of explosions were heard successful Tehran successful what was considered the heaviest aerial raid connected the superior since the warfare started Feb. 28. Iranian media did not study connected damages and casualties.

Israel said Monday that it was carrying retired “a wide-scale question of strikes” connected the Iranian metropolis of Isfahan, arsenic good arsenic Tehran and successful confederate Iran. The Israeli subject said it deed dozens of infrastructure sites, including the drone office of the Revolutionary Guard.

Meanwhile, Israel’s subject alerted the colonisation passim the time astir incoming missiles from Iran. From Lebanon, Iran-backed Hezbollah besides fired rockets into Israel connected Monday.

Trump said the United States was nearing its extremity to destruct Iran’s ballistic rocket stockpile and its quality to nutrient and motorboat them. The medication has offered shifting rationales and timelines since the commencement of the conflict.

He besides talked astir "building a caller country,” a remark that seemed to suggest the U.S. mightiness beryllium engaged successful the gathering of a caller Iran.

Trump likes thought of different ‘internal’ campaigner to lead

Iran

Thousands poured into a cardinal quadrate successful the capital, Tehran, and different locations successful a amusement of allegiance to the caller ultimate leader, waving flags and shouting phrases similar “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.”

The younger Khamenei, who has not been seen successful nationalist since the warfare started, was agelong considered a imaginable successor — adjacent earlier the sidesplitting of his 86-year-old father.

Trump told reporters that helium was “disappointed” that Mojtaba Khamenei was picked and that helium liked “the idea” of a person drawn from an “internal” radical of candidates, saying that worked good with Venezuela.

The younger Khamenei is seen arsenic adjacent little compromising than his precocious father. As ultimate leader, helium has the last accidental connected each large policies, including Tehran’s disputed atomic program.

Though Iran’s cardinal atomic sites are successful tatters aft the U.S. bombed them during the 12-day Israel-Iran warfare successful June, it inactive has highly enriched uranium that’s a method measurement distant from weapons-grade levels. Khamenei could take to bash what his begetter ne'er did — physique a atomic bomb.

Trump told reporters the warfare with Iran started due to the fact that that state was moving connected a caller tract for processing worldly for atomic weapons to regenerate 1 bombed past twelvemonth by the U.S.

Israel has already described Khamenei arsenic a imaginable target. Trump said Monday it “would beryllium inappropriate” to accidental whether helium would beryllium targeted.

U.S. marketplace seesaws implicit uncertainty of war

The U.S. banal marketplace careened done a manic Monday, going from a steep aboriginal nonaccomplishment to a coagulated summation arsenic worries turned into anticipation that the warfare with Iran whitethorn not past that long. Oil prices whipped from astir $120 per barrel, the highest since 2022, backmost toward $90.

Iran’s attacks successful the Strait of Hormuz person each but stopped tankers from utilizing the shipping lane done which a 5th of the world’s lipid is carried, and Iranian drones and missiles person targeted lipid and state infrastructure successful large producers. Attacks connected merchant ships adjacent the strait person killed astatine slightest 7 mariners, according to the International Maritime Organization.

Kamal Kharazi, overseas argumentation advisor to the bureau of the ultimate leader, told CNN connected Monday that Iran is prepared for a agelong war. He said helium sees nary “room for diplomacy anymore” unless economical unit prompts different countries to intervene and halt the “aggression of Americans and Israelis against Iran.”

Turkey, meanwhile, said NATO defenses had intercepted a ballistic rocket that entered the country’s airspace for the 2nd clip since the warfare started.

Regional choler grows arsenic vigor infrastructure is hit

Saudi Arabia lashed retired astatine Iran pursuing the drone onslaught connected its monolithic Shaybah lipid field, saying Tehran would beryllium the “biggest loser” if it continues to onslaught Arab states.

In the UAE, location to the futuristic metropolis of Dubai, authorities said 2 radical were wounded by shrapnel from the interception of Iranian missiles implicit the capital, Abu Dhabi. The Emirati Defense Ministry said 15 ballistic missiles and 18 drones were fired astatine the state connected Monday.

Early Tuesday, the United Arab Emirates said a drone onslaught targeted its consulate successful the Kurdish portion of Iraq, causing harm but nary injuries. The connection from the overseas affairs ministry did not blasted the onslaught connected anyone but decried it arsenic “a unsafe escalation and a menace to determination information and stability.”

Iran besides attacked Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, wherever the authorities said that a idiosyncratic was killed and others injured successful an Iranian onslaught targeting a residential gathering successful the capital, Manama.

Several U.S. diplomatic missions person ordered each but cardinal unit to leave.

The warfare has killed astatine slightest 1,230 radical successful Iran, astatine slightest 397 successful Lebanon and 11 successful Israel, according to officials.

A full of 7 U.S. work members person been killed.

Trump said Monday that household members of the soldiers told him during the transportation of their remains implicit the play successful Dover, Delaware: “Make definite you win, sir."

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Magdy reported from Cairo, and Weissert reported from Washington. Associated Press journalists astir the satellite besides contributed to this report.

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