Threat and counterthreat: War in Iran spirals into a dangerous new escalatory phase

DARK DAYS IN TEHRAN: Power is out in large swaths of the Iranian capital of Tehran today, as Israel announced “a wide-scale wave of strikes” on Iranian infrastructure, and President Donald Trump set a deadline of tonight for Iran to “FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz,” or face “obliteration” of “various” power plants “STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST.”

The region is on edge, awaiting Trump’s next move. Two U.S. Marine expeditionary Units, carrying 4,500 troops, are making their way to the region, and Trump remains cagey about the possible use of ground forces to open the strait or occupy Iran’s Kharg Island, a distribution point for 90% of Iran’s oil exports.