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Trump Warns of ‘Very Bad’ Future if NATO Allies Refuse to Help Open Critical Strait of Hormuz

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President Trump on Sunday warned NATO faces a “very bad” future if the US allies fail to help reopen the crucial Strait of Hormuz, as oil prices soar during the Iran war.

Trump said in an interview with the Financial Times that European nations and other global powers that rely on Gulf oil should join a US-led effort to secure the waterway — where roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply normally flows.

“It’s only appropriate that people who are the beneficiaries of the Strait will help to make sure that nothing bad happens there,” Trump told the British outlet, arguing that Europe and China are more heavily dependent on oil from the region than the US.

“If there’s no response or if it’s a negative response I think it will be very bad for the future of NATO.”

The president also said he could delay his summit with China’s President Xi Jinping later this month as he presses Beijing to help unblock the Strait.

“I think China should help too because China gets 90 percent of its oil from the Straits [sic],” Trump told the Financial Times. (Read more from “Trump Warns of ‘Very Bad’ Future if NATO Allies Refuse to Help Open Critical Strait of Hormuz” HERE)

US Embassy in Baghdad Hit in Missile Attack

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The US Embassy in Baghdad was targeted in a missile attack on Friday night, according to reports.

The missile struck a helipad at the embassy, the Associated Press reported.

Smoke was seen rising from the diplomatic mission in video posted on social media by Sabereen News, a pro-Iranian militia outlet in Iraq.

The attack took place shortly after two fighters belonging to an Iran-backed militant group were killed in Baghdad, AFP reported, citing sources.

The embassy is located in Baghdad’s heavily fortified “green zone.”

It’s unclear if anyone was injured in the attack. (Read more from “US Embassy in Baghdad Hit in Missile Attack” HERE)

President Trump Orders Oil Drilling Operations to Resume off California

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The Trump administration has signed an executive order to ​resume oil drilling operations off the Southern California coast, citing national energy security concerns.

The order, which invokes a Cold War-era Defense Production Act, will prove controversial despite the potential to bring down gas prices, which are now the highest in America.

Gov. Gavin Newsom also flagged the state would challenge the order in the courts.

Secretary of Energy Chris Wright is now permitted to take actions under the Defense Production Act.

California’s price for a regular gallon hit an average of $5.416 on Friday.

That’s far above the national average of $3.60. (Read more from “President Trump Orders Oil Drilling Operations to Resume off California” HERE)

Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Scott Bessent Says U.S. Navy Will ‘Soon’ Escort Tankers Through Strait of Hormuz

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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday that the U.S. Navy will “soon” begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz to protect them from Iranian terrorist attacks.

“My belief is that as soon as it is militarily possible, the U.S. Navy, perhaps with an international coalition, will be escorting vessels through,” Bessent told Sky News on Friday.

“There are, in fact, tankers coming through now, Iranian tankers, I believe some Chinese flag tankers have come through. So we know that they have not mined the straits,” he continued.

Sky News reported that Bessent had to take a two-hour break from the interview because he was called into the White House Situation Room. Upon his return, the interviewer asked if plans for naval escort had been discussed, and Bessent responded: “Your words, not mine.”

On Thursday, Energy Secretary Chris Wright also said naval escorts for tankers could begin “soon,” perhaps by the end of March, but the forces necessary for the mission were not available yet. (Read more from “Scott Bessent Says U.S. Navy Will ‘Soon’ Escort Tankers Through Strait of Hormuz” HERE)

Here Are The Biggest Things America Could’ve Done With $11 Billion Spent In Iran War Week 1

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The Iran War is costing the U.S. billions of dollars every week it drags on. Meanwhile, there are programs at home that desperately need the funding more.

In a closed-door briefing with Congress, the Trump administration said that the first week of the Iran war cost around $11.3 billion (as well as several heroic lives). The figure, which covers munitions and initial operations but excludes ongoing maintenance, personnel costs, and pre-war buildup, represents a significant outlay of taxpayer dollars directed toward overseas military engagement. While some argue this is a small price to pay to end the Iranian regime, the economic toll on Americans should not be ignored.

That $11 billion could support key domestic initiatives that enhance U.S. security, create jobs, and reduce reliance on foreign resources, thereby better fulfilling President Donald Trump’s 2024 voter mandate.

Domestic energy production is central to reducing U.S. dependence on foreign oil and stabilizing prices for American consumers. Diesel prices spiked to well over $5 per gallon in some areas amid the U.S. involvement in Iran. The current national average for regular gasoline is $3.63, up almost $1 from a month ago ($2.94), according to AAA data.

Trump announced Tuesday that the U.S. would build the first large-scale greenfield refinery in Brownsville, Texas, in nearly 50 years. (Read more from “Here Are The Biggest Things America Could’ve Done With $11 Billion Spent In Iran War Week 1” HERE)

US obliterates ‘every MILITARY target’ on Iran’s Kharg Island in historic bombing raid, Trump says

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Military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island – the loading site for most of the Islamic Republic’s oil exports – were “totally obliterated” by US airstrikes during a historic bombing raid in the Persian Gulf, President Trump announced Friday.

“Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

The island, located about 16 miles off the Iranian coast, is one-third the size of Manhattan and controls 90% of Iranian crude oil exports.

Trump said the island’s oil infrastructure was not targeted but may be hit in future strikes, if the Iranian regime doesn’t allow ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

“Our Weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the World has ever known but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island,” the president said. (Read more from “US obliterates ‘every MILITARY target’ on Iran’s Kharg Island in historic bombing raid, Trump says” HERE)

Iran War Bill Now Bigger Than DOGE Cuts Congress Passed

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The United States military spent over $5 billion in munitions alone during the first two days of Operation Epic Fury, with war costs appearing to have surpassed $9.4 billion in U.S. Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) spending cuts codified by Congress.

The U.S. military launched strikes against the Islamic Republic of Iran on Feb. 28, targeting Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps command and facilities which killed the Supreme Leader of Iran Ayatollah Ali Khameinei and roughly around 49 senior regime and military officials, dealing a crippling blow to the Iranian government structure. The Pentagon used $5.6 billion in munitions within just the first two days of its ongoing Iran operation, according to three anonymous U.S. officials who spoke to The Washington Post.

An anonymous congressional official told the Atlantic that the Pentagon estimated the Iran war’s preliminary cost to be around $1 billion per day and that the Pentagon could request as much as $50 billion in supplemental funding.

Politico reported that senior GOP lawmakers privately expect the Trump administration to request tens of billions of dollars for the Iran war. Some GOP lawmakers heard estimates that the Pentagon is spending up to $2 billion a day, according to Politico.

President Donald Trump told reporters on March 9 the war would end “soon,” but no specific timeline has been confirmed. (Read more from “Iran War Bill Now Bigger Than DOGE Cuts Congress Passed” HERE)

Two Oil Tankers Explode — Leaving at Least 1 Dead — After Suspected Iranian Attack in the Persian Gulf

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At least one person is dead and two oil tankers are ablaze in the Persian Gulf after a suspected Iranian attack on the vessels.

Explosive-laden Iranian boats reportedly struck the two tankers on Wednesday, Reuters reported, citing the initial findings of an Iraqi-led investigation into the fires.

The tankers may have been carrying as much as 400,000 barrels of Iraqi oil, according to TankerTrackers.com.

Farhan al Fartousi, the director general of the Iraqi Ports Company, told CNN that the 38 foreign crew members had to be rescued from the damaged ships after the “explosions.”

Footage of the fires show the flames spreading in the surrounding water, a sign oil is leaking from the massive tankers, which were anchored alongside each other prior to the attack, according to CNN. (Read more from “Two Oil Tankers Explode — Leaving at Least 1 Dead — After Suspected Iranian Attack in the Persian Gulf” HERE)

Photo credit: X/SaadoonMustafa

Trump Says US Must ‘Finish the Job’ in ‘Virtually Destroyed’ Iran: ‘Don’t Want to Leave Early’

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President Trump said Wednesday that the US must “finish the job” in Iran — warning that a “weak, pathetic” future president could allow Tehran to build nuclear bombs.

“We don’t want to leave early, do we? We got to finish the job, right?” Trump said during a rally in Kentucky.

“Some day… perhaps you’ll have a weak, pathetic person” as president, “like Barack Hussein Obama,” Trump said, noting his first-term decision to trash Obama’s 2015 Iran nuclear deal.

Under the Obama deal “they would have had nuclear weapons, and this world would, right now, be a different place,” he said.

The president did not say what specific goals he hopes to achieve in the remainder of the war or share a timeframe — after previously floating four weeks or less. (Read more from “Trump Says US Must ‘Finish the Job’ in ‘Virtually Destroyed’ Iran: ‘Don’t Want to Leave Early’” HERE)

Report: Iran’s New Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei ‘More Dangerous’ than His Father

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Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, the son of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is described as being “more dangerous,” according to a report.

Jaber Rajabi, who previously studied “at a religious seminary” with Mojtaba, explained to the Jerusalem Post that he had previously stated, “If war breaks out, that Mojtaba will try to control the region.”

Rajabi, whose father “fought in the Iraq-Iran War,” and whose mother “worked for a short time in the office” of Mojtaba’s father, also warned that Mojtaba “has a complete disregard for the value of human life,” according to the outlet.

The outlet noted that in a previous interview with The Atlantic, Rajabi stated that Mojtaba is “obsessed with the end of days”:

“Mojtaba, at that time, was very hypocritical. He says something, but inside him there is something totally different,” Rajabi recounted to the Post. Rajabi had earlier told The Atlantic that his former study partner was obsessed with the end of days and had believed “he himself will have a special part in hastening humanity down that path.”

Twelver Shia belief holds that the 12th Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, who is believed to be in hiding, will return at the end of times to establish a period of global justice in which oppression is eradicated. Islamic apocalyptic traditions also describe major conflicts preceding this era; in Sunni hadith literature, one such event is the Malhama al-Kubra, a great battle sometimes interpreted as a confrontation with Western powers.

(Read more from “Report: Iran’s New Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei ‘More Dangerous’ than His Father” HERE)