Tehran, IRAN – Iran passed another night without US airstrikes on Sunday, as Washington paused military operations approaching their fifth month. Reports suggest the US is running low on weapons and ammunition, which is limiting plans to intensify the conflict.
The break has raised hopes that negotiations could resume after nearly two weeks of consecutive nightly US attacks. However, US media reported the pause could also be due to dwindling supplies of missiles used to shoot down incoming attacks, including Patriot interceptors.
Fighting over the strategic Strait of Hormuz disrupted diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran. The conflict then expanded beyond the energy corridor to include attacks on US bases, regional shipping and Gulf allies.
US operations against Iran were “on a hold”, CNN reported, citing an unidentified Pentagon source. This comes despite US President Donald Trump threatening a “much higher level” of strikes on Friday.
Plans to escalate the campaign have been shelved partly due to shrinking supplies, The New York Times reported, citing two people briefed on the matter.
Trump also faces the risk of a wider Middle East war, the estrangement of vulnerable Gulf allies and further shocks to the global economy, the newspaper said.
Vice President JD Vance and top US general Dan Caine both raised concerns about escalation at a White House meeting on Friday, CNN reported.
Caine told Trump the military could successfully carry out the available options but warned of possible implications, according to the network.
Trump said on Friday he had not decided whether to return to full-scale operations.
“We’re talking to them right now. I think they’re getting more and more serious,” he told journalists.
Trump said Iran faced a choice between a deal and strikes at a “much higher level”.
The war that Trump once predicted would last four or five weeks is now approaching its fifth month and is affecting the Republican’s approval ratings ahead of crucial US midterm elections in November.
The Pentagon had presented Trump with a plan for a 14th night of strikes, but he declined to authorise it in favour of pursuing talks, Axios reported.
Fighting has spread to a new front. Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they struck Saudi Aramco sites in Jizan and Yanbu on Saturday, a day after Riyadh bombed Houthi targets.
A surface-to-air battery operated by Greek personnel in Saudi Arabia downed two ballistic missiles and a drone over Yanbu, the Greek air force media office said.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had stopped four ships attempting to transit the Strait of Hormuz in 24 hours.
Tehran’s blockade of the waterway remains the central point of tension with Washington.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran could not be blamed for the escalation and offered to broker talks between the Houthis and Riyadh, saying “there is no military solution”.
