According to CNN’s calculations, Trump has already stated 37 times that he is close to a deal with Iran. The broadcaster noted that this idea was first expressed on March 23. The US leader then declared on Monday that Washington and Tehran “will reach an agreement in the next two weeks.” And then comes his 38th statement. Trump declares that the United States will declare “total victory” over Iran in the next two weeks: “I think we’re winning this battle, but we’re really going to win it in the next two weeks, when we declare total victory. It will be a total victory. It will happen very soon, and oil prices will collapse.”
In a telephone interview with Axios on Monday, President Trump said he warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that if he started a war with Iran, he would be fighting alone. This was in response to Sunday’s Israeli attack on the Lebanese capital Beirut, which triggered a major missile exchange between Iran and Israel.
Despite the latest wave of hostility between Iran and Israel, traders on Polymarket remain optimistic that the United States will declare a new peace, an agreement, or an extension of the ceasefire until the end of July. With these expectations, the likelihood of this happening has dropped by about 14%, but still remains above 60%.
The European Union has imposed sanctions on two Iranian citizens and a unit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for their role in blockading the Strait of Hormuz. This is the first time the EU has imposed sanctions on Iran for restricting freedom of navigation. The official statement states that the European Union has added the Hormozgan Province Command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Naval Forces, as well as Mohammad Akbarzadeh and Hamid Husseini, to its sanctions list. Akbarzadeh is the deputy commander for political affairs of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Naval Forces, while Husseini is a representative of the Association of Exporters of Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products from Iran.
British bases in Cyprus have responded to outrage over plans to install additional antennas near Akrotiri. The administration defends the project, citing a 2007 study that found no increased cancer risk associated with the installation of military antennas. Cyprus has accused Turkish warplanes of electronically jamming the signals of planes carrying the defense ministers of Greece, France, and the Netherlands, who were en route to the EU summit in Nicosia on June 8, according to Cypriot sources.
Despite an earlier announcement of the suspension of flights at the airport, an unidentified plane from the United Arab Emirates landed at Mehrabad Airport. According to the Fars news agency, the plane landed after receiving special permission and coming from eastern Iranian airspace.
Iran’s chief negotiator, Mohammad-Baqer Ghalibaf: “We will turn the Iranian naval blockade into another defeat for the enemy.” A senior Iranian official told Al Jazeera: “Washington has changed the draft memorandum of understanding, which is unacceptable to us. There will be no agreement until Iranian assets are unfrozen and sanctions are eased.”
And now a look at the ongoing military scenarios in the Middle East and West Asia, updated at 3:00 PM on June 9. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has disabled the Palau-flagged tanker Marivex while it was transiting international waters in the Gulf of Oman, bound for Iran. An F/A-18 Super Hornet from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) carried out targeted attacks on the ship’s propulsion and steering systems after the crew failed to obey U.S. orders. The Marivex is no longer en route to Iran. CENTCOM forces have disabled seven vessels that did not obey orders, turned back 134 vessels that did, and allowed passage to more than 42 vessels carrying humanitarian aid since the blockade began on April 13.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it killed three senior Islamic Jihad officials in the central Gaza Strip over the weekend, including the head of the organization’s engineering department, his deputy, and the head of the organization’s anti-tank unit in the northern Gaza Strip In Lebanon, over the past 24 hours, Israeli fighter jets have carried out 28 airstrikes, five drone strikes, and 23 artillery bombardments in various areas of southern Lebanon. Some artillery bombardments were conducted with phosphorus incendiary bombs. Additionally, several buildings in the towns of Khiam, Kounine, Al-Tayri, and Bint Jbeil were mined and blown up by Israeli forces. So far, eight people have died and 32 have been injured, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health.
In response, Hezbollah claimed responsibility for 16 separate operations on June 9, preventing the Israeli army from advancing on the southern Lebanese fronts.
Kuninne and Beit Yahoun Front: After demolishing Kouninne and Al-Tayri, Israeli forces advanced towards the village of Beit Yahoun and entered its neighborhoods. Hezbollah launched rocket attacks against Israeli forces in this area. Israeli forces in Al-Tiri were targeted by a suicide drone, while those in the city of Rashaaf were hit by Hezbollah rocket attacks.
Yohmor al-Shaqif Front: A military communications vehicle and a logistics vehicle carrying ammunition near Al-Shaqif Castle, as well as two Alpha logistics vehicles and a Humvee in the southeastern area of Yohmor al-Shaqif, were hit by FPV drones.
A military bulldozer was hit by artillery shells and an anti-tank missile, and Israeli forces in the southeastern area of Yohmor al-Shaqif were attacked with artillery shells, rockets, and a suicide drone.
Israeli soldier concentrations in Naqoura were targeted by a kamikaze drone, and concentrations of Israeli soldiers in the Ishraq area of Aynatha, as well as an Israeli army artillery position in the town of Al-Adisseh, were hit by missile attacks. Hezbollah air defense forces also prevented an Israeli Hermes 450 drone from flying over the Iqlim al-Tuffah region by launching surface-to-air missiles. A video shows a Hezbollah anti-tank missile hitting an Israeli Merkava tank near Al-Shaqif Castle during clashes on June 4.
Maritime incident off the coast of Oman – fire on an oil tanker, causes still unknown.
According to the New York Times, a U.S. Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopter crashed yesterday in the Strait of Hormuz and two crew members were rescued. It is not yet clear whether the helicopter was shot down by Iranian fire or due to a technical failure.
Antonio Albanese e Graziella Giangiulio
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