World News
Saudi Tanker Attacked in Strait of Hormuz as Iran Threatens to "Destroy the Enemy’s Strategy"
Iran’s national security chief issued a new threat after Saudi Arabia said one of its tankers was hit while passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. is weighing additional sanctions on Iran and those who assist it.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday afternoon that Iran attacked a Saudi ship in the Sidar area of the Strait of Hormuz. It was the second attack on Saudi tankers since the start of the week. Saudi Arabia’s national shipping company said that two sailors were killed in a similar incident in the Strait of Hormuz the day before yesterday.
Meanwhile, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who is responsible on the White House’s behalf for advancing sanctions to be imposed on Iran, said today in an interview with Fox News: "We are telling our friends and enemies: Do not trade with the evil Iranian regime. If we have to, we will bankrupt you. We will sever all of their ties with the outside world."
Bessent addressed the sanctions aimed at harming Iran’s economy, saying that his message "to everyone is to stay away from Iran; no one should support this regime." He said that among the targets of additional sanctions being considered by the U.S. administration could be "airlines, shipping and digital assets."
On the other hand, Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary, Mohsen Rezaei, issued a new threat: "Soon you will see that Iran’s new strategy on the battlefield, in diplomacy and in the fight against the economic blockade will destroy the foundations of the enemy."
The International Atomic Energy Agency also reported today that "Iran continues to deny U.N. nuclear agency inspectors access to its nuclear facilities, preventing them from verifying the location and status of its stockpiles of uranium enriched to near weapons-grade levels."
International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi said that "the lack of information about this material, and the limited access to facilities for verifying it, raise deep concerns from the perspective of nuclear proliferation."
