Trump Cancels Iran Attack.

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper warned that the Iranian and the tit-for-tat American blocking of the Straits of Hormuz will lead to millions going hungry. Trump had made statements like "the clock is ticking" and "time is running out" for the Iranians to make a deal. According to news reports, Trump was about to launch a massive assault on Iran, thus reigniting the war. No doubt Israel would have been at the US's side should this have gone ahead. However, Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social that at the behest of Gulf leaders, he had stopped any attack on Iran. Intense negotiations are happening as I type this, apparently. Iran has submitted another revised response to Trump's call for a deal with Iran. The last message to Trump from Iran for a deal was called "Totally unacceptable" by the President.

So what do the latest demands by Iran contain in this revised message for a deal, and is Pakistan still the middle person between the two? Essentially, the Iranian demands go something like this:

1) Ending the US blockade of Iranian ports.

2) Lift sanctions.

3) Releasing frozen Iranian funds.

4) Ending the war on all fronts.

5) Removing US forces from nearby areas.

These sound very much like the last demands Iran made. Iran has demanded compensation for damage inflicted on itself by the US and Israel, which Trump, at least for now, has totally ruled out. One Iranian military spokesman has stated that the Straits of Hormuz shall "forever remain in the possession of Tehran and will be used as an all-round economic, political, and military lever". Since Iran stopped shipping- through the Strait, it knew it had a weapon that could be devastating for the West, that of economic warfare. And nations like the UK and the US are already facing a cost-of-living crisis, and have to deal with this too.

The US then launched a counterblockade to strangle Iranian oil and other shipments vital to its economy. Iran's economy was already crippled because of sanctions; this blockade must be even more devastating for it. However, it appears it is still able to sneak some ships through, even though many have been stopped and boarded by the US Navy. Iran itself is also stopping vessels, and whether it is forcing vessels to pay a toll, as it said it would, is unknown. Iran has been seeking other ways to ship its oil to China via rail. But it will not be able to transport its oil in the amounts it does with shipping.

Many nations are already transitioning away from fossil fuels like gas and oil, and will be thinking even more about switching to alternatives. Countries like India, which depend on fossil fuels, for example and even China. So in one way, despite Trump's rhetoric of "Drill baby drill", this crisis may sound the death knell for fossil fuels. People will see how this war has threatened their lifeline and total dependence on gas and oil. As I said, those looking to replace fossil fuels with alternative fuels will be doing it anyway, probably because of this war, but not necessarily so entirely. As they were looking to replace fossil fuels anyway, gradually. If not right away. And those nations not already implementing this will be forced to do so because of this war.

Meanwhile, in Lebanon, Israel has ordered the evacuation of more civilians from the south as it trades fire with the Iran-backed group Hezbollah. So what is the likelihood of a permanent ceasefire to end the war? And the only certainty on that one is the uncertainty.