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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Joseph Gedeon in Washington

Oil, strait of Hormuz and empty threats: a timeline of Trump’s flip-flopping on the Iran war

Donald Trump Iran Oil Hormuz United States Truth Social Kharg Island the White House
Damaged residential building in Karaj, Iran after recent strikes in April 2026
A residential building that was damaged by recent strikes at the Vahdat town on 3 April 2026 in Karaj, south-west of Tehran, Iran. Photograph: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

When Donald Trump launched Operation Epic Fury alongside Israel on 28 February, his administration had settled on a set of stated, and broad, objectives: destroy Iran’s missiles, eliminate its navy, prevent a nuclear weapon.

Over a month later those objectives have multiplied, contracted and contradicted each other.

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