LIVE | Trump criticizes several countries for lack of ‘enthusiasm’ in reopening Strait of Hormuz

After stating that it would be capable of taking the war “as far as necessary,” the Iranian regime threatened to attack U.S. companies with offices in the Middle East.
​
​In a message obtained by AFP, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps urged employees of U.S. companies to “leave these areas immediately” because the areas where the companies are located “will be attacked.”

More than 50,000 Americans are working on Operation Epic Fury in the Middle East as the joint operation with Israel enters its 16th day. So far there have been more than 6,000 combat flights and more than 100 Iranian naval vessels have been sunk.

"We will continue to rapidly deplete Iran's ability to threaten freedom of navigation in and around the Strait of Hormuz," said Brad Cooper, commander of Central Command (CENTCOM), in charge of providing updates on the offensive.

To that goal of protecting the strait, Cooper added that of dismantling "Iran's ability to threaten freedom of navigation in and around the Strait of Hormuz." As examples, he showed photographs of the destruction of a naval drone storage facility, a drone production factory, an IRGC military depot.

The commander also accused Iran of having attacked civilians on more than 300 occasions in several countries in the region: Oman, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Cyprus, Cyprus, Turkey, Azerbaijan, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Iraq, Kuwait and Bahrain. Specifically, he condemned a recent attack in Tel Aviv:

"In just the last few days, the Iranian regime launched a reckless attack against civilian neighborhoods in Tel Aviv with cluster bombs, an inherently indiscriminate type of munition. We join countries across the region in condemning this aggression, and we stand shoulder to shoulder with our partners in bolstering our own defenses."

(AFP) The New York Stock Exchange opened higher on Monday, driven by a slight drop in oil prices.
​
​In early trading, the Dow Jones was up 0.80%, the Nasdaq index was up 0.98%, and the broader S&P 500 index was up 0.82%.

The Iranian regime's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi threatened to take the war “as far as necessary,” while President Donald Trump is urging major powers to press for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
​
​“I think by now they have learned a good lesson and understood what kind of nation they are facing—one that does not hesitate to defend itself and is ready to continue the war wherever it may lead, and to take it as far as necessary,” Araqchi said, according to remarks reported by AFP.

The situation in the Middle East war is causing the price of crude oil to continue to rise and remain above the $100 per barrel barrier. At the close of the Asian market and in the first European movements, the Brent barrel reached $106.50, while the U.S. benchmark, the West Texas Intermediate, reached $104 dollars.

This has generated wide volatility in the markets, which closed with different signs. Thus, in Asia, the indexes of Tokyo, Shanghai, Sydney, Wellington, Taipei, Manila, Bombay, Bangkok and Jakarta closed down, while Hong Kong, Seoul and Singapore rose.

London, Frankfurt and Paris were up at the start of the European session.

The governments of Australia and Japan ruled out seconding Donald Trump's call to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, blocked by Iran since the start of the Middle East war.


"We will not send a ship," said Australian Transport Minister Catherine King, despite acknowledging the importance of reopening the lane.

For its part, Tokyo is "not considering" a maritime security operation in the area, Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi said.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi commented later, "The question is what Japan should do on our own initiative and what is possible within our legal framework, not what the United States is asking for."

Saudi Arabia's anti-aircraft defenses intercepted 61 drones, according to figures released by the Defense Ministry. Also the defense systems of United Arab Emirates intercepted missiles and drones launched by Iran, according to the Gulf country's Defense Ministry.

Earlier, authorities in Dubai reported a fire sparked by a "drone incident" near the city's airport, which forced a brief suspension of flights.

The Israeli Army announced new bombing raids on Tehran and southern Beirut during the early hours of Sunday morning into Monday. Loud explosions were reported in Tehran, while Lebanese media reported that Israeli bombs had hit neighborhoods that had been warned to evacuate during Sunday morning.

A civilian was killed on the outskirts of the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi when a missile struck his vehicle, officials reported, as Iran continued its retaliation in the Gulf for the U.S.-Israeli attack.

The Israel Defense Forces announced the start of "limited and targeted ground operations against key Hezbollah strongholds in southern Lebanon, with the aim of reinforcing the forward defense zone."

In a statement, the military noted that "this activity is part of a broader defensive strategy aimed at establishing and reinforcing an advanced defensive posture, which includes the dismantling of terrorist infrastructure and the elimination of terrorists operating in the area, in order to create an additional layer of security for the residents of northern Israel.

French President Emmanuel Macron, said Sunday that he had told Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian that it was "unacceptable" to attack French interests.

Thursday night, an Iranian-made drone attack in the Erbil region of Iraqi Kurdistan left one serviceman dead and six other French soldiers wounded.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu came out against reports from Iran that he had been assassinated, as well as death threats against him made by the ayatollahs.

In a video, Netanyahu scoffed at those claims and reappeared in a video ordering coffee in a coffee shop: "Am I dead? I die for coffee and for my people," he said. The president also showed both his hands to counter those who spread rumors of his death because of a previous video in which he appeared to have six fingers.