By Jana Choukeir, Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart
DUBAI/WASHINGTON, March 21 (Reuters) – The Israeli military struck Iran and Beirut on Saturday as the U.S. was sending thousands more Marines to the Middle East and President Donald Trump accused NATO allies of cowardice over their reluctance to help open the Strait of Hormuz.
More than 2,000 people have been killed since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, while Americans appear increasingly concerned at signs the war could expand further as it enters its fourth week.
Israel said it was attacking Hezbollah on Saturday in the Lebanese capital as it steps up airstrikes targeting the Iran-backed militia in the deadliest spillover from the war on Iran since Hezbollah fired on Israel in support of Tehran on March 2.
Israel also launched new attacks on Iran on Saturday, including on the capital Tehran, its military said.
GERMANY, FRANCE READY TO HELP ON HORMUZ AFTER WAR
Vital energy infrastructure in Iran and neighbouring Gulf states has also been attacked, and oil prices have jumped 50% since the war began, threatening global economic shock.
In the U.S., United Airlines said it would cut its scheduled flights by 5% in the second and third quarters, planning for prolonged higher oil prices.
The Strait of Hormuz, conduit for around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, has been effectively closed to most shipping since the United States and Israel launched the war against Iran.
Trump on Friday called U.S. allies “cowards” for declining to help open the strait while fighting continued.
Several allies, who were not consulted before the war, have pledged to join “appropriate efforts” to ensure safe passage through the strait, but Germany and France have said fighting must stop first. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said he would speak to Trump this weekend.
Iran is ready to let Japanese-related vessels pass through the Strait of Hormuz, Kyodo News reported on Saturday, citing Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. Japan gets around 90% of its oil shipments via the strait.
The Trump White House, in an effort to increase supply and lower prices, said it would waive sanctions for 30 days to allow the sale of 140 million barrels of Iranian oil stranded on tankers by the war. The administration had previously eased sanctions on a similar amount of sanctioned Russian oil.
The Israeli military said before its Saturday attacks it had issued evacuation warnings for seven neighbourhoods in the southern suburbs of Beirut. More than 1,000 people have been killed in Lebanon and over 1 million displaced in the Israeli attacks.
U.S. GROUND TROOPS WOULD BE UNPOPULAR WITH AMERICANS
On Friday, Israel’s military carried out two large waves of airstrikes on Tehran and central Iran, and Israel faced multiple waves of missile attacks from Iran, according to the Israeli military.
As Muslims around the region began to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, ending the fasting month of Ramadan on Friday evening, and Iranians marked Nowruz, the Persian New Year, new Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei issued a message of defiance.
Khamenei – who has not been seen in public since the Israeli attack that killed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on the war’s first day – said Iranians had responded with unity and resistance and “dealt a disorienting blow to the enemy”.
A U.S. intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Khamenei’s statement raises questions about his condition, since his father had traditionally marked the New Year with a video address.
Three U.S. officials told Reuters on Friday that 2,500 Marines, along with the amphibious assault ship Boxer and accompanying warships, would deploy to the region, although they did not say what their role would be.
A new Reuters/Ipsos poll showed almost two-thirds of Americans believe Trump will order troops into a large-scale ground war, with only 7% supporting such a move.
Two officials said there had been no decision on whether to send troops into Iran. Sources had told Reuters that possible targets could include Iran’s coast or Kharg Island oil export hub.
Trump said on Thursday he was “not putting troops anywhere,” when asked by a reporter about his plans, adding, “If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you.”
Trump said the United States was close to reaching its goals in the war, which include degrading Iran’s military and preventing it from developing a nuclear weapon, and might wind down its military effort.
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali in Washington, Andrew Mills in Doha and Timour Azhari in Riyadh; Additional reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Tom Hogue; Editing by William Mallard)
