White House gave Iran private message before new Hormuz operation
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Trump arrives at a White House reception on Monday. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
A high-level Trump administration official informed Iran on Sunday of the impending U.S. operation to "guide" ships through the Strait of Hormuz and warned Tehran not to interfere, according to a U.S. official and a source with knowledge.
Why it matters: The private message suggests the White House wanted to mitigate the risk of potential escalation. But despite the warning, the Iranians launched a string of attacks on U.S. Navy ships, commercial vessels and the United Arab Emirates.
State of play: On Tuesday, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs chair Gen. Dan Caine downplayed the Iranian attacks and claimed the ceasefire remained in place.
- Nevertheless, some U.S. and Israeli officials believe President Trump could give an order to resume the war later this week if the diplomatic stalemate continues.
Behind the scenes: The warning about "Project Freedom" came on Sunday and aligned with the Truth Social post Trump published that evening.
- Hegseth said on Tuesday that the U.S. "is communicating both overtly and quietly to the Iranians to allow this defensive operation to take place on behalf of the world."
- White House spokesperson Anna Kelly referred Axios to Trump's Truth Social post but declined to comment further.
Driving the news: During the first day of the operation on Monday, Iran conducted several attacks on U.S. Navy ships that passed through the strait, as well as on other commercial vessels in the region and on targets in the UAE.
- Caine claimed at Tuesday's press conference that the Iranian attacks were "below the threshold of restarting major combat operations."
- "Right now, the ceasefire holds," Hegseth said. He claimed the U.S. expected "there would be some churn" at the beginning of the Hormuz operation.
- "There are some actions the IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] takes sometimes that are outside the bounds of what maybe Iranian negotiators would like. That's their job to rein them in and create the conditions for a deal," Hegseth said.
- Both Hegseth and Caine said the U.S. military stood ready to resume the war quickly if Trump orders it.
Zoom in: The U.S. operation did not meaningfully increase the flow of oil or cargo through the strait in its first 24 hours. CENTCOM reported two U.S.-flagged ships had traveled through on Monday, and none on Tuesday.
- Hegseth claimed "hundreds more ... are lining up." At the moment, though, it seems most shipping companies do not trust the administration's assurances that a lane is now open.
- "We would urge Iran to be prudent in the actions they take," Hegseth said.
The other side: There have been no new Iranian attacks on ships on Tuesday. Speaker of Parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on X that Iran managed to create a "new equation" with its retaliation on Monday.
- Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi claimed the negotiations with the U.S., mediated by Pakistan, "are making progress." He called on the Trump administration not to get "dragged back into quagmire by ill-wishers."
The latest: The UAE's Defense Ministry said Iran launched a new missile and drone attack against the country on Tuesday and air defense systems had responded.
