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Six months of war
The U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, and Friday marked six months of conflict as President Donald Trump said the war would last four to five weeks.
“The war began on Feb. 28 when the U.S. and Israel launched strikes”
ABC News reported that Trump told the American people on the first day of attacks that the war was meant to "defend the American people by eliminating imminent threats from the Iranian regime," which he said included Iran’s continued pursuit of a nuclear weapon.
ABC News also said the opening days of the war included a deadly airstrike on an all-girls school in southern Iran that killed roughly 160 civilians, 120 of them schoolchildren, and that Iran blamed the United States and Israel while neither assumed responsibility.
The same ABC News account said U.S. Central Command has said it is investigating the bombing and that the U.S. will "never" target civilians, with investigations ongoing and few updates.
After months of strikes and retaliation, ABC News said Iran shut down commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, turning the waterway into a central front and chocking a key shipping lane.
Trump shifts to pressure
As the six-month mark arrived, President Donald Trump told reporters Thursday that "They’re not paying their troops. They’re in deep trouble. They have very little capacity," and he added, "We don’t want to speak to them. We’re not looking to meet or anything,".
AP said the administration’s strategy is shifting toward increasing economic pressure rather than military action, with threats to punish any country or entity that continues to conduct business with Tehran.
AP reported that the U.S. has already spent more than $37.5 billion on the conflict and that the administration is weighing diminished munitions stockpiles after months of war, raising concerns about U.S. military readiness elsewhere.
CNBC said the White House has turned its focus to ramping up financial pressure on Iran and its trading partners, describing the strategy as President Donald Trump’s "economic D-Day."
CNBC also quoted Gregory Brew of Eurasia Group saying the conflict has "lapsed into a standoff" and that a breakthrough "doesn't look imminent."
Strait of Hormuz stakes
The Strait of Hormuz remained the focal point as the U.S. and Iran traded attacks, with AP reporting that Trump declared Thursday that the "Strait of Hormuz is open," saying 24 vessels passed through a day earlier.
“Trump again declared Thursday that the “Strait of Hormuz is open,” saying 24 vessels passed through a day earlier.”
AP said that was a fraction of the roughly 130 vessels that passed through the vital waterway daily before the war began, while mediators Qatar and Pakistan continued to press for a diplomatic off-ramp.
In a separate account, The Hill said the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported an oil tanker was hit in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, but that the crew was safe and no environmental damage was reported.
The Hill also said the government has said 9 million barrels are passing through the strait each day, still shy of the roughly 15 million barrels that passed through before the war, and that Lloyd’s List Intelligence put last week’s ship traffic up 50 percent from the week before.
CNBC framed the stakes in market terms, saying front-month Brent crude oil futures have gained almost 20% since the war began but are trading around a third lower than their April peak of $126.41 a barrel.