The New Arab Staff
24 April, 2026
The Trump administration is drawing up plans for a large-scale attack against Iran if it does not cave to US pressure over the Strait of Hormuz, American media reported on Thursday.
The dispute over the strategic waterway has emerged as a key hurdle in peace talks, with both countries engaged in an ongoing standoff after the US imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports.
Tehran – which has effectively controlled the strait since the beginning of March – says it will only ease its stranglehold if the US lifts its blockade, which Washington has refused to do.
Iranian officials say the blockade is a breach of the ceasefire and are refusing to travel to Pakistan for a second round of negotiations.
Amid the deadlock, US military chiefs are developing plans for fresh strikes against Iran, including carrying out President Donald Trump’s threats to destroy civilian infrastructure, including energy facilities, according to CNN, citing several sources familiar with the matter.
The lockdown in the strait has sent shockwaves through the world economy, sparking severe fuel shortages and fears of a global hunger crisis. About a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas and a third of its fertilisers transited the strait before the war.
President Donald Trump on Thursday declared a shoot-to-kill policy against mine-laying vessels in the latest escalatory move following the US Navy’s seizure of several Iran-linked tankers.
This came after The Washington Post published the details of a classified Pentagon assessment suggesting it would take as long as six months to de-mine the waterway. The Pentagon vehemently denied the report and accused the newspaper of “cherry picking” and “dishonest journalism”.
Israel’s hardline Defence Minister Israel Katz renewed threats to launch a massive assault against Iran’s infrastructure.
“We are awaiting a green light from the United States – first and foremost to complete the elimination of the Khamenei dynasty… and additionally to return Iran to the Dark Age and the Stone Age by destroying key energy and electricity facilities and dismantling its national economic infrastructure,” he said Thursday.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened senior ministers and defence officials to discuss developments in Iran and Lebanon, according to Israeli media.
The US-Israeli air campaign failed to destroy Iran’s military capabilities, with US intelligence assessing that thousands of its ballistic missiles and drones and around half of its missile launchers survived the six-week blitz.
Analysts doubt whether renewed military strikes will be sufficient to reopen the strait or compel Tehran to accept US demands over its nuclear programme.
Despite the bellicose rhetoric, Trump appears reluctant to return to full-scale war, unilaterally extending the two-week ceasefire this week to allow more time for the diplomatic process to play out.
Both sides remain far apart on the nuclear issue, including over Iran’s ability to enrich uranium and the fate of its stockpile of highly-enriched material
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