The diplomacy and the threat: As delegations from several countries (Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan) gathered in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Sunday, March 29th, to find a solution to the conflict in the Middle East, Washington continued to send mixed signals. “While the White House timidly tries to end the war in Iran through diplomatic means, American troops are also arriving in the region to deliver what Donald Trump hopes will be the knockout blow if he fails to negotiate a ceasefire with Tehran,” writes The Guardian. A summary of a day with still very contradictory signals.
Israel intensified its strikes against Tehran on Sunday, March 29th. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) conducted overnight strikes on several military sites in the Iranian capital, targeting missile and air defense infrastructures, reported Ha’Aretz in its live coverage, citing a statement from the Israeli army. The offices of Qatari channel Al-Araby were also hit by a missile strike.
In Lebanon, where for the first time since the beginning of the conflict, the Israeli army announced an operation from Mount Hermon in Syria, the war could also be prolonged, writes L’Orient-Le Jour. The Lebanese daily relayed information from Yediot Ahrahonot, stating that “the Israeli army will likely remain in the region for months, or even longer, according to officials interviewed by the Israeli newspaper.”
The information was revealed on the morning of Sunday, March 29th, by the Israeli daily Ha’Aretz, which, in its live coverage, shared the news reported in Iranian state media. “Five people were killed today in an Iranian port city near the Strait of Hormuz in attacks led by Israel and the United States,” reported the Tel Aviv-based media. The port in question is Bandar Khamir, which is located almost directly across from the strait that once carried 20% of the world’s oil traffic before the war, and which the United States wants to “liberate” from Iranian control.
Iran has claimed attacks on two of the world’s largest aluminum smelters in Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. An attack on a US military base in Saudi Arabia also left around twenty people injured. “Iran still has a sufficient arsenal of missiles and drones to destabilize the region and inflict heavy losses on its adversaries,” affirms the New York Times. This assessment was confirmed by an article published in The Guardian on Saturday, March 28th, based on a Reuters report, stating that “after a month of war, the United States has only destroyed about one-third of Iran’s missile and drone arsenal.”
In the face of the threat from the Pasdarans to target American universities in the Middle East, the American University of Beirut (AUB) announced on Sunday that classes would be held online for the next two days, according to L’Orient-Le Jour.
In southern Israel, workers were instructed to seek shelter while teams dealt with a chemical leak after an Iranian missile strike on a factory in Beer-Sheva and the industrial zone of Neot Hovav.
“The enemy openly sends a negotiation message while secretly preparing a ground attack.” This statement, reported by The Guardian on Sunday, March 29th, was made by Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the President of the Iranian parliament, who denounces an alleged double game from the White House. His comments coincide with information widely circulated in the international press in recent days.
These reports mention US plans for a ground attack on Iran, as detailed by The Washington Post on Saturday, March 28th. According to the Washington-based newspaper, which claims to have spoken to several sources speaking anonymously, the United States are preparing for “several weeks of ground operations in Iran.” It is not a large-scale invasion, clarifies the American media, but rather organizing “raids led by a mix of special operations forces and conventional infantry troops.” This could also explain the announced arrival of 3,500 American soldiers.
Gathered in Islamabad on Sunday to de-escalate the conflict, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia were to discuss the terms of a de-escalation. “Although neither Washington nor Tehran attended the meeting, it is nonetheless seen as a preparatory step towards broader diplomatic opening,” writes the Pakistani newspaper Dawn. Citing diplomatic sources, the newspaper asserts that “talks could take place in Islamabad on Tuesday, under the auspices of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.”
Pakistan is working to “bring the United States and Iran back to the negotiating table,” said a statement released on Sunday by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s office. Nothing has been confirmed.
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