UPDATE: US AND ISRAEL ATTACK IRAN – July 15, 2026

Five consecutive nights of U.S. strikes, a reinstated naval blockade, and Iranian retaliation across several Gulf states have brought the Islamabad Memorandum to the point of effective collapse. As Donald Trump declared himself the “Guardian of the Hormuz Strait,” demanded a 20 percent fee, and withdrew it within 24 hours, the Houthis’ attack on Saudi Arabia brought Bab al-Mandab into the conflict as a second strategic chokepoint. The escalation is no longer confined to Iran and the United States - it now reaches across the critical infrastructure of the entire Arabian Peninsula.
