THE US launched strikes on Iran early on Wednesday, hours after it revoked a licence authorising the sale of Iranian oil in retaliation for what it said were Tehran’s attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran hit back with strikes on Bahrain and Kuwait. US President Donald Trump said later that the interim agreement with Iran was “over” but he would allow talks to continue. That raised concerns that the wider conflict in the Middle East could resume - and oil prices shot up. The attacks on shipping threatened efforts to resume fuel shipments in the strait that are crucial to the global economy. The crossfire came during the dayslong funeral for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in the war’s first moments.

 

Trump also threatened to strike Iran’s civilian infrastructure and to seize Kharg Island, with its oil infrastructure, as his ceasefire with Tehran appeared to be in tatters. He made the threats after announcing that the US was preparing for a second night of strikes against Iran after Iranian attacks on American military sites in the Gulf. If the US has to, Trump said, it will take out Iran’s electric plants and desalinisation plants. He said Tuesday’s strikes included attacks on Kharg Island but not its oil facilities. “Maybe we’ll take over Kharg Island. We may take over Kharg Island.”