At last, the US and Iran reached a two-week ceasefire that halted 40 days of US-Israeli attacks on Iran and the Iranian’s retaliations that had pushed the region to the brink of a wider war. The truce, brokered by Pakistan, follows fierce exchanges of air strikes, missile attacks and threats that saw unprecedented strikes on Gulf nations, disrupted global shipping routes and heightened fears of a prolonged confrontation.
The truce saves the US business tycoons in the Middle east from attacks by Iran that are being reportedly targeted, earlier. Iran had hit the right spot, and their strategy was to directly hit the US economy. If we estimate the combined assets of 18 US companies in the Middle East is that of worth of $15 trillion. These 18 companies are – Google, Meta, Intel, Nvidia, Microsoft, Apple, Tesla, HP, Dell, IBM, Oracle, JP Morgan, GE, Plantar, Cisco, Boeing, Spire Solutions, Amazon and Z42, are the main investors in the US stock market which is the backbone of their economy. Now imagine what kind of fear it will create in the US stock market if their stock or share prices fall.
Iran has given a deadline and warned that as soon as the deadline passed, the Iranian missile will hit the first target of such business conglomerates and their first target would be the Batelco, the largest telecommunications company located in Hamala, Bahrain. This Batelco is the infrastructure of Amazon Web Services. Earlier, there was a missile attack on Amazon Web Services in Dubai. So far, 60 Amazon Web Services have lost functionality. Banking, payments and delivery are all offline now. Now think, what will the remaining 17 companies do if Iran attacks? They have invested billions of dollars in the Middle East over the last 5 years. Billionaire businessmen, investors are closing their businesses, taking them away from the Middle East.
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s stance was very clear, and he told Israel to stop attacking Lebanon. Lebanon should not become another Gaza. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said that 23 years ago, the United States spread a false rumour to influence us to attack Iraq. But no nuclear weapons or weapons of mass destruction were found in Iraq.
Israel has surpassed all international laws during wartime; it passed a law to execute Palestinian prisoners. And they even opened champagne bottles to celebrate the passing of this law. Think, how are they suffering from inferior and complexities in the front line of the war? It had questioned the legitimacy of the war again.
In a recent move, the US may have shown little success in rescuing the missing crew alive. It may have given Trump a complaint but does not portend win of this war. Many believe that it was military defeat because in the rescue operation, US had lost two warplane carriers, and two Black Hawk helicopters in the attacks by Iran IRGC. On the Iran side, despite their best efforts, why could the IRGC not catch the US crew? Finding the crew was like finding a needle in a haystack for the IRGC, but the US knew the exact location of their mission crew. The jackets of the American pilots and crews have some advanced survival radios and GPS beacons, which can only be detected by American satellites or special aircraft.
The Strait of Hormuz is vital for the United States because about one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through it. Any disruption raises global oil prices, affecting the US economy. It is also strategically important for military presence, global trade, and maintaining stability in the Middle East region. So, the opening of Strait of Hormuz becomes more imminent for the survival of the US economy and political influence in the Middle east. Counting all the factors it becomes a war of attrition between the US-Israel-Iran war, could affect the world’s economy. Finally, considering all these, Trump may cancel the plans for a ground operation in Iran and accept the proposals for the truce.
The writer is a journalist and columnist
