War Without End: Trump and Iran Both Dig In as Global Costs Spiral

Both the United States and Iran dug deeper into their respective military positions on Saturday, with neither side showing any inclination toward negotiation as the war entered its third week. President Trump said publicly the terms for a deal were not yet good enough and suggested the conflict would continue indefinitely. Iran meanwhile launched missiles at the UAE, fired rockets at Israel, and threatened to strike any Gulf energy facility tied to American companies. The world watched as two determined adversaries drove the global economy closer to crisis.
US warplanes continued bombing Kharg Island on Saturday, adding to the destruction wrought on Friday. Trump said in public remarks the island had been effectively demolished and called on China, France, Japan, South Korea, and the UK to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz. The strait, closed by Iran since fighting began on February 28, carries about 20 percent of global oil and gas daily. Oil prices were already near $120 per barrel, and analysts warned of a surge to $150 if the conflict continued on its current trajectory.
Iran’s response on Saturday demonstrated its determination to fight on every available front. Ballistic missiles struck Fujairah in the UAE, suspending oil-loading at one of the world’s most important ship-refuelling ports. Iranian commanders threatened strikes on any Gulf energy facility with American connections and called on Arab governments to expel US forces. Iran’s strategy, the International Crisis Group’s Ali Vaez explained, was to survive, maintain military capacity, and prolong the conflict until Tehran could negotiate on its own terms.
Israel conducted dozens of airstrikes inside Iran on Saturday, killing at least 15 people in Isfahan. Iran fired rockets at Israel in return. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed Iranian leaders were “desperate and hiding” underground, and said the newly installed Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei had been wounded. Iranian officials confirmed the injury but called it minor. Analysts at the International Crisis Group assessed the regime as structurally intact and capable of sustaining a prolonged campaign despite the losses it had suffered.
The mounting human and economic toll of the war underscored the urgency of finding a resolution. More than 1,400 Iranians had been killed under relentless bombing. Thirteen Israelis and roughly 20 Gulf residents had also died. Lebanon’s crisis continued, with 800 killed and 850,000 displaced from Israeli strikes on Hezbollah. Six US troops died in a military aircraft crash in Iraq. The US embassy in Baghdad was struck overnight, and Americans throughout Iraq were ordered to leave. With no talks under way and no end date offered, the path to peace remained entirely unclear.