by Brian Shilhavy
Health Impact News

The conflict in the Persian Gulf erupted today, with both the U.S. and Iran claiming to have attacked each other’s ships and boats. The U.S. claims it escorted some ships through the Strait today, which Iran denies.

Here is Iran’s version from PressTV:

May 4: Iran repels US push at Strait of Hormuz, hits warships after they ignore warnings

Excerpts:

Iran consolidated its unchallenged control and authority over the Strait of Hormuz on Monday amid a widening collapse of US regional strategy, pushing back decisively against Washington’s latest military offensives.

Tehran rejected the Pentagon’s assertion that several Iranian boats had been destroyed, noting that no commercial vessels or tankers had crossed the strait.

Iranian naval forces fired missiles and drones to warn off US warships attempting to approach the restricted zone, and two missiles later struck a US vessel that ignored repeated warnings.

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) vowed to forcefully stop any vessel that defies Tehran’s management rules for international transit.

The fallout stretched across the region, from the Fujairah port fire in the UAE to renewed anxiety in Persian Gulf capitals, underscoring that American adventurism is driving instability.

Here is the U.S. view from CBS News:

U.S. sinks 7 small Iranian boats as Iran launches attacks on UAE and ships in Strait of Hormuz

What to know about the Iran war today:

• Iran launched its first missile and drone attack on the United Arab Emirates since a ceasefire with the U.S. took effect on April 8, and it fired two drones at a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, UAE authorities said Monday.
• The U.S. military said two commercial vessels safely transited the key waterway Monday under the Project Freedom initiative announced by President Trump. Iran fired missiles at ships being protected during the operation, and Mr. Trump said U.S. forces destroyed seven Iranian small boats for trying to interfere.

Here are more headline news stories from our Telegram channel today:

Israel seizes nearly 60 percent of Gaza as it plans to resume war, report says

From Middle East Eye:

Excerpts:

Israel has expanded its control of the Gaza Strip to nearly 60 percent of the territory despite the ceasefire, as it prepares for a possible resumption of the war, Army Radio reported on Sunday.

Senior military officials, cited by the broadcaster, said they are pressing to restart fighting, arguing that now is the optimal moment to defeat Hamas.

Operational plans for renewed attacks have been completed, the report said, with a final decision pending approval from Israel’s political leadership.

The military has also reduced forces in southern Lebanon while redeploying brigades to Gaza and the occupied West Bank.

Will the UAE Suffer for Siding with Israel and the U.S.? No Longer a Member of OPEC, Other Gulf States May be Turning Their Back Against Them

We already know from reports in recent days that the rich Arab Gulf state, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), was the first Arab Gulf state to allow Israeli troops on its soil, and has now withdrawn from OPEC to appease the U.S.

Today, Iran has reportedly renewed strikes against them, and the UAE is begging for help from other Arab states.

But according to an analyst on Al Jazeera, no help will come from the other Arab States. Most of them are already looking to China as their main market, and selling their oil in Yuan instead of U.S. Dollars.

From Al Jazeera:

Gulf states still ‘reluctant’ to retaliate against Iran: Analyst

Sultan Barakat, a professor at Qatar’s Hamad Bin Khalifa University, says the UAE is likely to push for some form of Gulf retaliation against Iran following the latest missile and drone incidents.

“But I believe the Gulf states, by and large, will remain reluctant to engage,” Barakat told Al Jazeera.

“They absolutely understand that this is not their conflict; it’s being imposed on them. And they’ve already paid a very high price economically.”

China’s rare defiance of US sanctions sparks showdown over banks

From The Straits Times:

Excerpts:

China has ordered companies to defy US sanctions for the first time, in a step that threatens to put its banking sector in the crosshairs of competition between the world’s largest economies.

The decision, announced on May 2, risks becoming a watershed moment. While China has often railed against unilateral sanctions, it has in the past quietly allowed companies to comply to avoid blowback on its economy and preserve access to the US financial system.

Beijing is now signalling a far firmer stance against such restrictions by directing companies not to abide by US sanctions on five domestic refiners linked to the Iranian oil trade.

A commentary on the ruling Communist Party’s official People’s Daily app called the announcement “a pivotal step in the transition of China’s foreign-related legal weapon from institutional reserves to practical application”.

The move represents Beijing’s most aggressive action to date in countering Washington’s financial statecraft, setting up a showdown before a long-awaited meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping later in May.

It comes with the US sanctions system already under strain, as Washington vacillates on restrictions against Russia, Venezuela and Iran.

China is deploying a blocking measure introduced in 2021 that was aimed at protecting its firms from foreign laws it deemed unjustified. The refiners – including Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery, which was sanctioned in April, and several other privately owned processors – had been facing asset freezes and transaction bans.

California braces for uncertainty as last shipment of Persian Gulf oil arrives in Long Beach

From the LA Times:

Excerpts:

The last California-bound oil tanker to pass through the Strait of Hormuz since war erupted is at the Port of Long Beach offloading its valuable cargo — 2 million barrels of crude destined to be transformed into gasoline, jet fuel and diesel.

The New Corolla loaded up in Iraq on Feb. 24 — just days before U.S. and Israeli forces launched attacks on Iran, plunging the region into turmoil and sparking a double blockade of commercial shipping.

In two weeks, the Hong Kong-flagged tanker will have fully unloaded at the Marathon Petroleum terminal and departed again for distant waters. After that, California must figure out how to replace some 200,000 barrels of oil a day that will no longer be arriving from the Persian Gulf.

California’s own supply of crude oil has been declining since the 1980s, due to aging fields and a geology that makes drilling particularly costly. The state’s gasoline refining capacity is also falling off, increasing reliance on imports and highlighting California’s status as an isolated energy island without gas pipelines to bring in supply from other states.

Now, with the end of the Middle East conflict nowhere in sight and the average cost of California gasoline topping $6 per gallon, some lawmakers are warning of potential oil and gas shortages.

Exclusive / Republicans draft Iran war authorization

From Semafor:

Excerpts:

A small group of Senate Republicans are still working behind the scenes on an authorization of military force for Iran that they can move on if President Donald Trump reprises strikes, according to several people briefed on the matter.

Republicans expect to receive a fresh notification if hostilities resume, after Trump said Friday that the first period of conflict was over. The War Powers Act allows “expedited” consideration of a military authorization if it is introduced during the first 30 days of the next 60-day period of hostilities, meaning the authorization would get a quick floor vote in the Senate.

Aides are studying whether it would be subject to a 60-vote threshold at some point; some Republicans believe it might only require a simple majority on the Senate floor.

The GOP authorization would likely limit ground troops and provide for a finite period of conflict.

Comment on this article at HealthImpactNews.com.

This article was written by Human Superior Intelligence (HSI)

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