U.S.-Iran Conflict Enters Third Week Amid Strait Closure

Three weeks into a U.S.-led military campaign against Iran, President Donald Trump faces mounting pressure to either escalate operations or seek an exit, as Iranian forces maintain control over the Strait of Hormuz and disrupt global energy supplies. The conflict, which began with a precision strike in late February that killed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has crippled much of Iran's conventional military but left its asymmetric capabilities intact, leading to retaliatory attacks on Gulf allies and a sharp rise in oil prices.

U.S. and Israeli forces launched Operation Epic Fury with an audacious daylight assault on Khamenei, followed by targeted strikes that eliminated other senior figures, including de facto leader Ali Larijani and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Basij commander Gholamreza Soleimani. Officials described the strategy as decapitation, aimed at dismantling the regime's command structure and its nuclear and missile programs. By early March, the U.S. had destroyed Iran's navy, air force, radar systems, and anti-aircraft defenses, according to military assessments. Additional operations hobbled arms manufacturing facilities and security posts, while an Israeli...