AFP - Squid Business

Oil prices tumble as markets shrug off Iranian rebuttal to US

Crude oil prices slid more than seven percent Monday while Wall Street stocks advanced after markets shrugged off Iran’s rebuttal to the US weekend attack on Iranian nuclear facilities.Iran announced it had launched missiles at a major US base in Qatar, with explosions ringing out in Doha and projectiles seen streaking overhead.But Qatar described the situation as stable, while energy analysts said oilfield assets were not affected.”This is a face-saving measure by the Iranians and hopefully the diplomatic off-ramp will be taken,” said John Kilduff of Again Capital, who described the Iranian action as “somewhat measured” and apart from population centers.The Iran-Israel clash has focused worry on the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway for seaborne oil that has long been used by Iran as a geopolitical bargaining chip.But Kilduff said, “it’s pretty clear that this is not going to turn into — right away at least — any kind of impact on oil flows in the region, particularly the Strait of Hormuz.”US benchmark West Texas Intermediate slid 7.2 percent to $68.51 a barrel, below its level ahead of the current Iran-Israel clash.Iran’s response “signified that Iran isn’t going to have the fire power to escalate this in an adverse way,” said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare.”The response is relatively weak,” he said.While US stocks tripped into negative territory around the time of the Qatar attack, major indices quickly recovered.The S&P 500 finished up by one percent.Earlier, sentiment on the Paris and Frankfurt stock markets was hit by a closely watched survey that showed eurozone business activity was almost stagnant again in June.London’s stock exchange was lower with shares in airlines, including EasyJet and British Airways-owner IAG, suffering losses on fears of rising energy costs and disruptions in travel to the Middle East.In Asia, Tokyo was lower while Hong Kong and Shanghai gained.The dollar gave up gains against the euro and pound after Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman official said she would support cutting interest rates at next month’s meeting if inflation holds steady.The market currently expects the Fed to resume cutting interest rates in September.Bowman’s comments come on the heels of similar remarks from Fed governor Christopher Waller. They are likely to spur questions this week when Fed Chair Jerome Powell sits for two days of congressional testimony.- Key figures at around 2040 GMT -Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 7.2 percent at $72.07 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 7.2 percent at $68.51 per barrelNew York – Dow: UP 0.9 percent at 42,581.78 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 1.0 percent at 6,025.17 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 0.9 percent at 19,630.97 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.2 percent at 8,758.04 (close)Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.7 percent at 7,537.57 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.4 percent at 23,269.01 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.1 percent at 38,354.09 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: UP 0.7 percent at 23,689.13 (close)Shanghai – Composite: UP 0.7 percent at 3,381.58 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1581 from $1.1523 on FridayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3526 from $1.3451Dollar/yen: UP at 146.12 yen from 146.09 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 85.60 pence from 85.65 penceburs-jmb/jgc

Rishabh Pant: India’s unorthodox hero with ‘method to his madness’

Rishabh Pant’s swashbuckling style may not be the textbook technique of great Indian batsman of old, but the diminutive wicketkeeper wrote his name into the history books at Headingley on Monday.The 27-year-old became the first Indian to score hundreds in both innings of a Test against England to give his side the edge heading into a fascinating final day of the first of a five-match series.His fourth Test century in England also saw Pant become only the second wicketkeeper in 148 years of Test history, after Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower, to score twin centuries in the same match.Having already made 134 in India’s first-innings 471, he came out to bat with the game delicately poised in the tourists’ second innings at 92-3.True to form, though, Pant went about turning the screw in his own style.He almost knocked himself off his feet when hacking his second ball narrowly over the slip cordon before advancing up the pitch to slap Chris Woakes down the ground.But those shots were as nothing compared to a kneeling slog-sweep off an 87 mile-per-hour (140 kmh) delivery from England fast bowler Brydon Carse.Shoaib Bashir was then dispatched for two sixes in three balls, even if Pant put the breaks on for spells of the early part of his innings.All the while KL Rahul looked on from the other end, the opener’s more traditional 137 a counterpoint to vice-captain Pant’s whirlwind 118 during a fourth-wicket stand of 195.Rahul — who took 202 balls for his century, 72 more than Pant needed to reach three figures — said after stumps: “I’ve had a few partnerships with Pant. It’s hard for us to understand his mindset.”You’ve got to let Rishabh Pant be Rishabh Pant, there’s obviously a method to his madness! He’s averaging (around) 45 in Test cricket, there’s a lot of thinking behind the outrageous shots he plays.”– $3 million man –Born in Haridwar, Uttarakhand, Pant’s mother would regularly make the four-hour drive so her young son could receive cricket training in the major centre of Delhi, with the pair often staying in a Sikh temple as they could not afford the cost of accommodation.Pant came under the influence of the late Tarak Sinha, a coach who had already launched the likes of Manoj Prabhakar and Shikhar Dhawan on their way to careers as India cricketers.A year after making his debut in India’s first-class Ranji Trophy debut aged 18 in 2015, Pant scored a triple-hundred against Maharashtra.He was on his way, with Pant’s first Test century coming in just his third match, on the 2018 tour of England.The following year his stunning 159 off 189 balls in a total of 622 in Sydney sealed India’s first series win in Australia against an attack used to dominating in home conditions.And in Brisbane in 2021, an unbeaten 89 guided an injury-hit India to their second series win in Australia in two visits as he defied bowlers of the calibre of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon.However, Pant’s promising career and life were nearly cut short in a horror car crash in December 2022 when he had to punch his way out of the overturned vehicle as it burst into flames.After 15 months on the sidelines, many wondered if he would return to the professional game.But his comeback was so successful that Lucknow Super Giants made him the record signing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) when they splashed out $3.21 million for his services at last year’s November auction.He arrived in England with questions over his form after striking hust 128 runs in 10 IPL innings this IPL season.But Pant showed his class is permanent by putting England to the sword in some style.

Rishabh Pant: India’s unorthodox hero with ‘method to his madness’

Mondial des clubs: Kvara a eu bon dos de marquer, Doué de s’activer, Paris a besoin de Dembélé

Désiré Doué a été le plus dangereux, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia a marqué involontairement du dos et Ousmane Dembélé a beaucoup manqué au PSG, vainqueur sans briller de Seattle (2-0) et qualifié pour les 8e de finale du Mondial des clubs.Ousmane Dembélé, encore ménagé quoique rétabli de sa blessure musculaire, était absent au Lumen Field et cela s’est plus vu que lors des deux précédentes sorties. Car l’animation offensive du PSG, rappelant parfois celle de 2024 quand elle ronronnait sans percer les verrous adverses, a manqué de peps et d’imagination. Et, sans le coup de pouce du destin qui a amené au but chanceux de Kvara, elle se serait peut-être avérée stérile, de façon très malvenue, face à un adversaire jouant certes regroupé, mais pas du niveau défensif de Botafogo, qui avait su piéger Paris dans la semaine en annihilant ses attaques, tout en marquant sur sa seule opportunité (1-0).Face aux Sounders, le Géorgien, si percutant contre l’Atlético Madrid, n’a été que l’ombre de lui-même sur son aile gauche, puisqu’il a raté quasiment tout le peu qu’il a entrepris en première période, hormis un tir à rebond capté sans difficulté par le gardien (16e). Et finalement c’est en sortant de sa zone de confort habituelle, sur un corner mal renvoyé par la défense de Seattle, qu’il a fait le dos rond sur une frappe non cadrée de Vitinha, pour renvoyer le ballon dans les filets (35e).Paris, tenu de s’imposer pour assurer sa présence au tour suivant, qui se déroulera à Atlanta dimanche contre un adversaire à déterminer, était enfin libéré d’un poids. Mais pas vraiment les pieds de Kvara, sorti à la 63e minute et qui avait dû en attendre 56 autres, pour enfin s’illustrer. A l’initiative d’un une-deux avec Joao Neves, il a eu de l’espace pour centrer parfaitement vers Désiré Doué, qui a vu son tir contré in extremis après un crochet réussi.- Hakimi finit fort -L’attaquant français, passé dans une autre dimension depuis son doublé en finale de la Ligue des champions (5-0) le 31 mai, ratait là l’occasion de rendre une copie parfaite. Elle aura été finalement très bonne dans la mesure où, au-delà d’une ligne statistique vierge de but et de passe décisive, il a été le Parisien qui a apporté le plus d’étincelles dans une attaque parfois cotonneuse, où le jeune Senny Mayulu a été préféré à Gonçalo Ramos. C’est l’ancien Rennais qui a tiré le premier, obligeant Stefan Frei à une claquette salvatrice (12e), puis une deuxième fois de loin à ras de terre (15e).En jambes, il a comme à son habitude provoqué balle au pied et en s’appuyant sur une remise de Mayulu, il a pu armer un tir croisé du gauche dans la surface. Heureusement pour Seattle, le Parisien était en position déséquilibrée et Frei a pu s’en emparer (30e).Voilà pour une première période qui a manqué de substance avec un Doué trop esseulé sur son côté droit alors qu’Achraf Hakimi se montrait peu présent pour le soutenir offensivement.Finalement, parce que Seattle a tenté en seconde période de revenir au score, le latéral droit marocain a pu apporter le surnombre offensivement, comme il a l’habitude de le faire et dans une configuration de contre devenue un classique parisien cette saison, pour inscrire le but du break sur un centre précis de Bradley Barcola (66e). Il ne fallait pas en attendre plus de ce Paris SG à Seattle, où la fatigue commence peut-être à se faire sentir au bout d’une saison interminable.

US hit by first extreme heat wave of the year

A potentially life-threatening heat wave enveloped the eastern third of the United States on Monday impacting nearly 160 million people, with temperatures expected to climb to 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) in the New York metropolitan area.The country’s first significant scorching heat of the year arrived over the weekend and peaks Monday and Tuesday in Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York City.”This extreme heat will not just be uncomfortable and oppressive for New Yorkers,” warned Mayor Eric Adams, adding that each year heat claims the lives of 500 people in this city of eight million.”It’s going to be brutal and dangerous if you do not treat it with the understanding that we want you to,” he added.As sweltering heat enveloped the city, authorities urged seniors, people with health problems and those without air conditioning to stay hydrated and seek help at designated cooling centers such as libraries and recreation facilities. Heat records tumbled across parts of the US Northeast, including in Central Park, known as the lungs of Manhattan, where Monday’s temperature of 96 degrees broke a record that had stood since 1888, according to the National Weather Service.”Extreme Heat Warnings and Heat Advisories across much of the eastern third of the country (are) affecting nearly 160 million people” across at least 29 states, the NWS reported. “This level of HeatRisk is known for being rare and/or long duration with little to no overnight relief, and affects anyone without effective cooling and/or adequate hydration,” the agency warned.Meteorologists are describing the intensifying weather pattern as a heat dome, a high-pressure system that traps air and leads to steadily rising thermal readings.For many in the Big Apple, avoiding work in the searing heat was not an option.”We have to endure it, because otherwise what are we going to survive on?” Manuel, a manual worker repairing a building facade in New York’s Harlem neighborhood, told AFP.”Sometimes we stop because it’s a danger. We don’t all have the same energy, but you have to endure,” he added.In the Washington Heights neighborhood, authorities opened several fire hydrants so residents could seek relief with the gushing water.One of the local heroes was Ronald Marcelin, a 44-year-old air conditioning technician sweating profusely as he repaired a pizzeria’s AC unit.”I’m taking the heat so that everyone else can cool down,” Marcelin said with a grin.- Triple digits -The soaring temperatures come just as New Yorkers head to the polls Tuesday for the Democratic primary that will decide the party’s mayoral candidate. This promises to be a tight race between Andrew Cuomo, who is seeking political resurrection after resigning in disgrace as state governor in 2021, and rising left-wing star Zohran Mamdami.Over the weekend, Cuomo urged residents to cast their votes even if the temperatures hit 100 degrees Fahrenheit.In Washington, the heat index — what the temperature feels like with humidity factored in — was forecast to soar to as high as 110 F on Monday, and the mayor’s office urged residents to take advantage of cooling centers.Scientists say extreme heat waves are a clear sign of global warming, and they are expected to become more frequent, longer, and more intense.Fueled by human-caused climate change, 2024 was the warmest year on record globally — and 2025 is projected to rank among the top three.

Iran-Israel war: latest developments

Iran fired at a US military base in Qatar on Monday, as the war between longtime foes Israel and Iran raged after the United States sent bombers to attack the Islamic republic’s nuclear sites.Here are the latest developments:- US base in Qatar -Iran launched a retaliatory strike aimed at the United States’ Al Udeid military base in Qatar, the largest US military facility in the Middle East. Qatar said it had successfully intercepted the attack, which it called a “flagrant violation” of sovereignty and said it reserved the right to respond.No casualties were reported at the base, a US official said.US President Donald Trump dismissed the attack as “very weak.”He said Iran gave “early notice” of the strike, thanking the Islamic republic for the move that “made it possible for no lives to be lost, nobody to be injured.””Perhaps Iran can now proceed to Peace and Harmony in the Region, and I will enthusiastically encourage Israel to do the same,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.- IAEA cooperation -The speaker of Iran’s parliament said that Tehran is considering suspending its cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), accusing the UN’s nuclear watchdog agency of lacking objectivity and professionalism.- Iran Guards, Tehran prison -Israel carried out “strikes of unprecedented force against regime targets and agencies of government oppression in the heart of Tehran”, Defence Minister Israel Katz said as an AFP journalist heard loud blasts in the north of the Iranian capital.Katz said the targets included the notorious Evin prison in the city’s north, known to hold political prisoners and dissidents as well as foreign detainees.Iran’s judiciary confirmed Evin was struck, reporting “damage” and stressing the situation was “under control”. Israel also carried out a strike on Fordo, according to the military and Iranian media, a day after US “bunker buster” bombs hit the underground nuclear site south of Tehran.In Israel, air raid sirens sent people to bomb shelters on Monday, with the military reporting at least three missile barrages in less than two hours. – Iran warns United States -Iran’s armed forces chief of staff Abdolrahim Mousavi vowed on Monday that the country would take “firm action” in response to US strikes on key nuclear sites. “This crime and desecration will not go unanswered,” said Mousavi in a video statement published on state TV, adding that “we will take firm action against the American mistake”.Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said bases used by US forces “in the region or elsewhere” could be attacked.The US embassy in Bahrain — home to a major US naval base — reduced on-site staffing citing “heightened regional tensions”.In Qatar, home to large a US airbase, the American embassy told its citizens to “shelter in place until further notice”.Meanwhile, major international oil companies in Iraq, where the US has troops deployed and Iran backs various armed groups, had evacuated foreign staff, the state-owned Basra Oil Company said.- ‘Spillover’ -China on Monday warned against “the spillover of war”, urging the international community to do more to prevent the fighting from impacting the world’s economy, noting the global importance of the Gulf maritime trade routes off the Iranian coast.Oil prices briefly fell on Monday after surging earlier, as traders weighed the possible extent of retaliation by Iran.US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on China to help deter Iran from closing the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for one-fifth of the world’s oil supply.The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, said closing the strait would be “extremely dangerous”.Russian President Vladimir Putin slammed attacks on Iran as “unprovoked” and “unjustified” in a Moscow meeting with Tehran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said of the strikes, “There is no reason to criticise what America did at the weekend. Yes, it is not without risk. But leaving things as they were was not an option either.”NATO chief Mark Rutte, meanwhile, said alliance members had “long agreed that Iran must not develop a nuclear weapon” and called an Iranian atomic bomb his “greatest fear”.French President Emmanuel Macron called for a return to negotiations. “The spiral of chaos must end. I call on all parties to exercise the utmost restraint, de-escalate and return to the negotiating table,” he wrote on x.- Nuclear stockpiles -The UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency demanded Monday the return of inspectors to Iran’s nuclear sites in a bid to “account for” its highly enriched uranium stockpiles.”Allow IAEA inspectors to go back to Iran’s nuclear sites and account for the stockpiles of uranium” including the “400 kilograms enriched to 60 percent”, said agency chief Rafael Grossi.At an emergency meeting of the organisation’s headquarters in Vienna, he said Tehran had sent him a letter on June 13 announcing the implementation of “special measures to protect nuclear equipment and materials”.burs-dcp/yad/gv

L’Iran attaque une base américaine au Qatar, Trump appelle à la “paix”

L’Iran a annoncé lundi soir avoir lancé des missiles contre la base américaine d’Al-Udeid au Qatar au lendemain de raids des Etats-Unis sur ses sites nucléaires, une riposte dont il avait prévenu Washington selon Donald Trump, qui a appelé l’Iran et Israël à “avancer vers la paix”. M. Trump a qualifié la riposte de “très faible”. “Je tiens à remercier l’Iran de nous avoir prévenus à temps, ce qui a permis de ne pas perdre de vies et de ne blesser personne”, a-t-il ajouté dans un message sur sa plateforme Truth Social. Précisant que la base avait été évacuée, le Qatar a dit avoir intercepté les tirs iraniens contre cette plus grosse base militaire au Moyen-Orient. “En réponse à l’action agressive” des États-Unis, les forces armées iraniennes “ont frappé (…) la base aérienne américaine d’Al-Udeid, au Qatar”, a annoncé le Conseil de sécurité nationale iranien. Il a précisé avoir utilisé autant de missiles “que le nombre de bombes” utilisés dans les raids américains, signalant une réponse dument calibrée. Les Gardiens de la Révolution, l’armée idéologique de la République islamique, ont eux affirmé dans un communiqué, cité par l’agence de presse Irna, que “six missiles (avaient) touché la base”.”Peut-être que l’Iran peut maintenant avancer vers la paix et l’harmonie dans la région, et je vais vivement encourager Israël à faire de même”, a ajouté le président américain, semblant vouloir tourner la page de la guerre entre les deux pays lancée le 13 juin par une attaque israélienne. Selon le Pentagone, les bombardements américains sur le site souterrain d’enrichissement d’uranium à Fordo et des installations nucléaires à Ispahan et Natanz (centre) ont “dévasté le programme nucléaire iranien”. – Scènes de liesse à Téhéran -Plus tôt dans la journée, l’ambassade des États-Unis à Doha avait conseillé à ses ressortissants au Qatar de se “mettre à l’abri jusqu’à nouvel ordre”. La télévision d’Etat iranienne a montré en direct dans la soirée des manifestants en liesse à Téhéran, aux cris de “mort à l’Amérique”. Les tirs sur le Qatar prouvent que l’Iran menace “le monde entier”, a réagi un porte-parole de l’armée israélienne, Effie Defrin.Aavant que M. Trump ne s’exprime, l’Irak a mis en garde contre un “élargissement de la confrontation”. Ryad et Abou Dhabi ont condamné l’action iranienne, le Koweït et Bahreïn annonçant fermer leur espace aérien, et les cours du pétrole ont chuté. Plus tôt, les Etats-Unis avaient mis en garde l’Iran contre toute fermeture du détroit d’Ormuz, par où transite un cinquième du pétrole mondial. La télévision d’Etat iranienne a par ailleurs annoncé l’arrestation d’un “ressortissant européen” soupçonné d’être un “espion” au service d’Israël, sans plus de précision. – Frappes israéliennes sur Téhéran -Israël a de son côté appelé les habitants de Téhéran à s’éloigner des bases militaires et sécuritaires, prévenant de la poursuite de ses raids, après d’intenses frappes sur la capitale iranienne ciblant des centres de commandements des Gardiens de la Révolution et la prison d’Evine, en riposte à des tirs de missiles iraniens. La justice iranienne a fait état de dégâts dans certaines parties de la prison d’Evine, où sont détenus des Occidentaux, prisonniers politiques et opposants.Les deux Français, Cécile Kohler et Jacques Paris, qui y sont détenus depuis plus de trois ans, “n’auraient pas été touchés” a affirmé le chef de la diplomatie française, Jean-Noël Barrot, dénonçant une frappe “inacceptable”.Israël a aussi indiqué avoir mené des frappes pour “bloquer les voies d’accès” au site de Fordo enfoui sous une montagne, au sud de Téhéran. En Iran, la guerre a fait plus de 400 morts et 3.056 blessés, en majorité des civils, selon un bilan officiel. Les tirs iraniens sur Israël ont fait 24 morts, d’après les autorités.Affirmant que l’Iran était sur le point de se doter de la bombe atomique, Israël l’a attaqué le 13 juin, bombardant des centaines de sites militaires et nucléaires et tuant les plus hauts gradés du pays ainsi que des scientifiques du nucléaire.L’Iran, qui riposte avec des tirs de missiles et de drones vers Israël, dément vouloir fabriquer l’arme atomique mais défend son droit à un programme nucléaire civil.- “Changement de régime”? -Le président américain, Donald Trump, s’est prévalu dimanche de “dommages monumentaux” infligés aux sites nucléaires iraniens. L’Agence internationale de l’énergie atomique (AIEA) a jugé impossible à ce stade d’évaluer les dégâts, réclamant un accès aux sites iraniens. Des experts estiment que l’Iran pourrait en avoir évacué le matériel nucléaire, et Téhéran a affirmé toujours posséder des stocks d’uranium enrichi.L’Iran a enrichi de l’uranium au niveau de 60%, proche du seuil de 90% requis pour fabriquer une bombe atomique selon l’AIEA, qui dit toutefois n’avoir décelé jusque-là aucun indice d’un “programme systématique” iranien pour ce faire. Donald Trump, qui avait relancé les négociations avec Téhéran pour encadrer son programme nucléaire – lancées en avril sous médiation d’Oman – est “toujours intéressé” par un règlement diplomatique, a affirmé lundi la porte-parole de la Maison Blanche. Mais “si le régime iranien refuse de s’impliquer dans une solution diplomatique (…) pourquoi le peuple iranien ne retire pas le pouvoir à ce l’Iran régime incroyablement violent qui le réprime”, a-t-elle dit.”Si le régime iranien actuel est incapable de RENDRE A L’IRAN SA GRANDEUR, pourquoi n’y aurait-il pas un changement de régime ???” avait écrit la veille M. Trump sur son réseau Truth social.

L’Iran attaque une base américaine au Qatar, Trump appelle à la “paix”

Trump wants quick win in Iran, but goal remains elusive

President Donald Trump vowed that his order to bomb Iran would be a one-off and not the beginning of another prolonged US war in the Middle East.But with Trump musing about everything from “unconditional surrender” to regime change, it remains to be seen if the US intervention will remain limited — or if Iran will let it be.Two days after the United States bombed Iran’s key nuclear sites as part of an Israeli-led military campaign, Iran fired missiles at a major US base in Qatar that were shot down.Trump said that Iran gave advance notice of the missiles and offered thanks, apparently seeing a choreography to show that Iran can hit back without causing American casualties that would be sure to trigger another US strike.Iran acted similarly in 2020 when Trump ordered the killing of top general Qasem Soleimani, hitting back at a base in Iraq housing US troops without killing any — and tensions then subsided.But Israel’s strikes on Iran starting on June 13 mark the biggest attack on the region’s second most populous country since the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war, with the risks potentially existential for the Islamic Republic.Stacie Pettyjohn, director of the defense program at the Center for a New American Security, said that the US strike was “incredibly successful” on a tactical level but “it’s not clear that it’s actually achieved the operational or strategic objectives.”Iran is suspected to have moved highly enriched uranium stockpiles out of targeted sites.Iran also has plenty of other options to respond, including by threatening global oil prices through action in the oil-rich Gulf — which can range from closing the Strait of Hormuz to harassing ships with low-cost drones.”The Middle East is a theater where US military success, hearkening back to the first Gulf War, has often proved to be rather ephemeral and led to long-term commitments in terms of US forces to maintain stability after that initial success,” she said.- Trump warms to interventionism -Trump campaigned by billing himself as anti-war and just last month delivered a speech in Riyadh in which he denounced “nation-builders” who failed by “intervening in complex societies that they did not even understand themselves.”But Trump, always in tune with television images, quickly backed Israel after the apparent success of initial strikes, even through Trump had publicly urged Netanyahu to hold off and give a chance for diplomacy.Since then, and despite criticism from some in his right-wing base who loathe US interventionism, Trump has dialed up the tone.He has taken to social media to urge Tehran’s nearly 10 million people to evacuate, to demand “unconditional surrender” by Iran even though he said the United States was not at war, and to speak of the benefits of regime change, refashioning his campaign slogan to say, “Make Iran Great Again.”Netanyahu has also expanded goals well beyond nuclear sites, with Israel striking the gate of Evin prison, notorious for jailing political prisoners.Netanyahu has called on Iranians to rise up against Iran’s theocratic government, which has long faced wide domestic opposition. Iran under the Shah, who was deposed in 1979, was an ally of the West and Israel.But some Iran watchers expect a nationalist backlash against US and Israeli strikes — and so long as the Islamic republic is in place, the next moves for Trump are murky.The United States and Israel may have pushed back the Iranian nuclear program but it is unclear if Tehran would accept a binding agreement, said Max Boot, a military historian at the Council on Foreign Relations who was an advocate for the 2003 Iraq invasion.If Iran does not, “we’re locked in this kind of perpetual war with Iran, where every time there’s any detection of any advance in their nuclear program, then Israeli aircraft are going to wind up having to bomb again,” he said.”I’m not sure that there has been a carefully thought-out end-game in here.”