Trump says U.S. will bomb Oman if it ‘gets in the way’ over Iran war

The prospects for peace in the Middle East suffered a fresh setback, with President Donald Trump reportedly saying he is in no hurry to end the war with Iran and fighting flaring anew in Lebanon.

Sign In or Create an Account

In a phone interview with Fox News, Trump said a U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports is putting pressure on the country and that he has no timeline for resolving the conflict.

He also warned that if “Oman gets in the way we’ll bomb the s— out of them,” without give any further details. He made a similar threat in May. Oman is negotiating with Iran on how the Strait of Hormuz should be managed, but the U.S. isn’t part of those discussions.

Columnist Jesse Kline keeps you up to date with what’s happening in Israel and the effects of antisemitism on life here in Canada. Friday mornings.

By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.

A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.

The next issue of Channel Israel will soon be in your inbox.

We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again

The Iran war has dragged on for almost six months with no resolution in sight. A memorandum of understanding signed in June — which technically expires Monday — was meant to give Washington and Tehran a window to reach a more lasting peace deal within 60 days. But tensions over the re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz were quick to resurface hostilities, leading to several instances of military action. Both sides have said the agreement is defunct.

Iran and Oman have been involved in parallel discussions over Hormuz, with Tehran warning a deal won’t necessarily translate into a reopening of the crucial maritime route. Iran said a “shipping map” has been finalized as part of a broader agreement for the governance of traffic in the strait, but intensive talks are continuing.

Reaching a deal has been time-consuming due to security complexities and the “obstructionist behaviour of destructive elements,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei told reporters on Monday. Tehran has said the U.S. must remove its blockade.

Trump told Fox News that back channels with officials from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps remain open, something a spokesman later denied as a “delusion,” according to the state-run IRNA.

The price of Brent crude has gained more than seven per cent since the start of last week as the prospects further dimmed for a swift reopening of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and gas transited before the war. The global benchmark rose at much as 1.3 per cent on Monday to US$89.68 a barrel.

Tensions in the Middle East were already on the rise over the weekend, when Israel’s military said it killed senior Hezbollah commander Abu Hassan Alaa in southern Lebanon. Eleven people died in the Israeli strikes on Saturday, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said were in retaliation for an attack by the militant group that seriously injured three soldiers.

In recent days, Israel has also struck Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza, the Yemen-based Houthis have attacked ships in the Red Sea, and several vessels have been hit by projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz. Israeli settlers have meanwhile laid siege to Palestinian homes, drawing international condemnation. Netanyahu has downplayed that violence and blamed a small number of radicals.

Fighting is likely to complicate efforts to revive the deadlocked negotiations between the U.S. and Iran, with the 14-point memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran providing for a pause in hostilities “on all fronts, including Lebanon” and free passage through Hormuz.

Trump has struggled to find an off-ramp to a war that’s increasingly unpopular in the U.S. and threatens to penalize Republicans in November’s midterm elections. Last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is preparing to announce new economic measures on Tehran “like have never been seen.”

While much of Iran’s industrial capacity has been damaged and crude exports severely curtailed by the U.S. blockade, decades of sanctions have failed to force it to bend on its nuclear program or relinquish control over Hormuz.

Iran has used the relative lull in fighting to prepare for a potentially broader confrontation, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing Iranian and Arab officials. Tehran has installed hard-line veterans in key security posts and accelerated missile and drone production, it said.

Meanwhile, Trump’s son-in-law and peace envoy Jared Kushner is visiting the Middle East this week to try and accelerate a U.S.-brokered ceasefire in Gaza. He, along with former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace’s top envoy, are holding talks with Netanyahu in Jerusalem on Monday.

Kushner met with Hamas chief Khalil al-Hayya in Egypt on Sunday, the Associated Press said, citing a regional official and a Hamas official.

In a statement, Hamas called on mediators and the U.S.-created Board of Peace overseeing the ceasefire to “compel” Israel to approve a road map setting out the next steps in the truce, the news agency said.

— With assistance from Dan Williams, Patrick Sykes, Magan Crane and Michelle Jamrisko.

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our newsletters here.

This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.