PNN – The editor-in-chief of the Rai al-Youm newspaper Abdul Bari Atwan stated that the success of Iran’s strategy for managing a war of attrition against the United States has been proven.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network; Abdul Bari Atwan—a prominent Palestinian analyst and editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab online newspaper Rai al-Youm—dedicated the publication’s latest editorial to developments concerning the Strait of Hormuz and the collapse of the Islamabad agreement. He wrote that US President Donald Trump handed a major gift to Iran’s leadership by announcing levies that could amount to tens of millions of dollars for each supertanker passing through the Strait of Hormuz. This decision not only legitimized the very Iranian action that Trump and his Secretary of State had vehemently opposed, but also validated the measures taken by any nation in the world that exercises sovereignty over similar straits.
Trump’s confusion and helplessness have become apparent to everyone.
Atwan added that the value of this gift from Trump to Iran was doubled when he scrapped his plan to impose a 20% levy on shipments—less than 24 hours after announcing it—and replaced it with trade and investment agreements with Persian Gulf states. These agreements were offered in exchange for protecting their vessels, guaranteeing the security of the Strait of Hormuz, and even ensuring the security of the Gulf States themselves against the so-called “threat” from Iran.
This Palestinian writer emphasized that this hasty retreat—and the offering of alternative investment options to the Persian Gulf states—recalls the famous proverb about someone who tried to fix an eyebrow but ended up blinding the eye; it aptly describes Trump’s situation—not in the eyes of his adversaries, such as Iran, but in the view of his Arab allies in the Persian Gulf region, where he is now perceived as a confused and weak leader.
Expect another Retreat from Trump
The article continues: This is not the first time Trump has backed down from his threats—whether regarding tariffs or the threat to wipe Iran off the map. He will undoubtedly retreat from his decisions to reignite the flames of war, launch airstrikes on southern Iranian cities, impose a new naval blockade on all Iranian ports, and renew threats to bomb bridges and power plants should Iran’s leadership fail to return to negotiations.
The editor-in-chief of Rai al-Youm added: Iran’s leadership is employing a long-term strategy, prolonging the war of attrition that has ensnared the US President—a conflict that has now entered its fifth month.
According to this article, previous rounds of negotiations have demonstrated the success of this Iranian strategy—particularly in turning American public opinion against a president who launched a war lacking popular support, a clear strategy, or any safe exit plan to mitigate the ensuing economic, human, and military costs.
Atwan noted that we cannot rule out the possibility that mediators might resume efforts to halt the war and offer Trump—perhaps for the tenth time—a lifeline to retreat and end the conflict. Likewise, we cannot discount the possibility of a positive Iranian response and a return to negotiations aimed at reviving a ceasefire agreement or what is known as a memorandum of understanding.
The article goes on to state that Iranians are highly intelligent and shrewd, playing a cat-and-mouse game with Trump in which they are the cat and he is the mouse—to the extent that the CIA has officially acknowledged this Iranian astuteness and the precise, calculated tactics reflected in the statements made by the country’s officials.
New Iranian surprises await the Americans and Zionists
Abdul Bari Atwan stated: The Iranians are fortunate that the US is led by a reckless clown like Trump—a man plagued by numerous nervous and psychological crises, whose mental disorders require no medical proof. The coming weeks hold shocking surprises, primarily for the American people and secondarily for the occupying Zionist regime.
The article concludes by emphasizing that Iran’s swift and crushing response to the US violation of the ceasefire—demonstrated by the expanded scope of missile strikes targeting US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan—is merely the beginning. Just as the missiles of the Lebanese Resistance punished the occupying regime in the Galilee, Haifa, and Tel Aviv, the time has now come for Trump and his aircraft carriers and warships; the most striking evidence of this is the destruction of the US Fifth Fleet base in Bahrain.