The US President Donald Trump made the final decision on military action against Iran after a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Reuters reports this, citing sources.
According to the interlocutors, at the time of the phone conversation with Netanyahu, Trump generally approved the idea of a US military operation against Iran, but had not yet decided on the specific terms and format of the participation of American forces.
The American military had been increasing its presence in the region for several weeks, and the US administration expected that a decision to launch the operation was only a matter of time.
During the conversation, Netanyahu made arguments in favor of an immediate strike. In particular, according to intelligence, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his inner circle were to gather at his residence in Tehran, creating an opportunity for a clear strike.
According to Reuters sources, it was this conversation, along with intelligence about a rapidly closing “window of opportunity”, that were key factors in Trump’s final decision. As early as February 27, he gave the order to launch the operation.
Netanyahu argued that the elimination of the Iranian leadership could change the course of history and even provoke internal protests in Iran against the current regime, which has been in power since 1979.
War in the Middle East
On the morning of February 28, the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran. These attacks killed Iranʼs Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and almost the entire military leadership of the country — about 40 key high-ranking officials. A new ayatollah was elected on March 8, and he was Mojtaba Khamenei (the son of the deceased Ali Khamenei).
Iran, in response to the US and Israeli attacks, has begun shelling US bases in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and the UAE and firing missiles at Israel. Some Iranian drones and missiles have hit infrastructure and residential areas in Arab countries.
The war has halted tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea corridor between Iran and Oman that connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean. About a fifth of the worldʼs oil exports pass through it, tens of millions of barrels a day. Markets reacted immediately, sending oil, gas and precious metals soaring in price.
In particular, on March 9, world oil prices exceeded $100 per barrel for the first time in almost four years.
To keep prices down, the International Energy Agency has decided to release 400 million barrels of oil, and the US plans to release 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserve. On March 12, the US lifted sanctions on the purchase of Russian oil that was stuck at sea for 30 days, and a week later it gave permission for Iranian oil.
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