Middle East — 2026-07-15

Trump Holds Situation Room Meeting on Massive New Iran Strikes as CENTCOM Reimposes Naval Blockade

BLUFTrump's public ultimatum and Situation Room planning session make US strikes on Iranian power plants or bridges likely within the next nine days, crossing from military to civilian infrastructure targeting.

Trump convened a Situation Room meeting Tuesday with his national security team, including Vice President Vance, Secretary of State Rubio, Defense Secretary Hegseth and CIA Director Ratcliffe, to plan a broader offensive against Iranian strategic targets, according to three sources cited by Axios 1. CENTCOM resumed its naval blockade of Iranian ports Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET and conducted a seven-hour wave of strikes near the Strait of Hormuz against air defense, radar, anti-ship missile and drone-launch sites 123. CENTCOM said Iran has struck seven commercial ships in the past week, killing, wounding or leaving missing nearly a dozen crew members, while Iranian forces also struck US-linked sites in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan, wounding four Kuwaiti naval personnel 134. Trump told Fox News the strikes would expand next week to Iranian power plants and bridges unless Tehran returns to negotiations 1.

Analysis
Trump's Situation Room meeting shifts the campaign objective from degrading Iran's anti-ship capability near Hormuz toward planning strikes on Iran's broader strategic target set. US or coalition forces likely will strike Iranian power-plant or bridge infrastructure within the next nine days, carrying out the ultimatum Trump delivered publicly and, per reporting, through channels to Tehran. High confidence in that judgment rests on the convergence of a named target set, a public presidential deadline, and CENTCOM's parallel use of the reinstated blockade as added coercive leverage. Strikes on power plants or bridges would cross a threshold beyond the military and dual-use sites hit so far.
6 sources
  1. Trump held Situation Room meeting on massive new Iran strikes - Axios
  2. U.S. Forces to Resume Naval Blockade Against Iran - U.S. Central Command
  3. CENTCOM strikes targets in Iran as US reinstates Hormuz blockade - The Jerusalem Post
  4. Live updates: US launches fourth night of strikes on Iran and restarts naval blockade - CNN
  5. Iran war live: Trump says strikes 'will continue until I say enough' - Al Jazeera
  6. Live - US says will reinstate Iran naval blockade, Tehran warns of forceful response - Iran International

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