According to a confidential analysis by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Iran can withstand the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz for at least three to four more months before serious economic difficulties arise, the American newspaper Washington Post reports, citing anonymous US officials.
The CIA analysis states that Iran has retained a significant portion of its ballistic missile launch capacity despite weeks of intense bombing, three officials told the American newspaper.
One of them stated that Iran had preserved about 75 percent of its mobile launchers and about 70 percent of its missile stockpile.
He added that there is evidence that the regime in Iran has managed to repair and reopen almost all of its underground missile storage facilities, repair some of the damaged ones, and complete some that were almost ready at the beginning of the war.
One of the sources told the Washington Post that he believes Iran's capacity to withstand prolonged economic hardship is far greater, even than the CIA's assessment.
"The leadership has become more radical, more determined, and increasingly confident that it can outlast US political will and maintain domestic repression to contain any resistance. If you compare, you will see similar regimes that have endured for years under continuous embargoes and wars fought exclusively with air power," the official said.
Another source for the American newspaper from high-ranking intelligence circles stated that the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is causing increasing economic damage and accelerating Iran's systemic economic collapse.
"Iran's military has been severely degraded, its navy destroyed, and its leaders are in hiding. What remains is the regime's appetite for civilian suffering, for starving its own people to prolong a war it has already lost," said the unnamed senior official.
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The Iranian government has established an agency to inspect and tax ships seeking to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, according to US shipping data firm Lloyd's List Intelligence.
The agency, called the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, positions itself as the only valid authority that can grant permission to ships passing through the strait, Lloyd's said in an online briefing.
Iran's attempt to formalize control of the canal has raised new concerns about international shipping, as hundreds of commercial ships are trapped in the Persian Gulf and unable to reach the open sea.
Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for transporting oil, gas, fertilizers and other petroleum products, while the US is blocking Iranian ports.
Israel struck Beirut today for the first time since a ceasefire with Hezbollah was reached last month, saying it targeted the commander of the militant group's elite Radwan unit in the city's southern suburbs.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz announced the action in a joint statement. Israeli media reported that the commander was killed in the attack, but neither the Israeli military nor Hezbollah confirmed this.
The ceasefire in Lebanon was the foundation of a broader ceasefire between the United States (US) and Iran, as stopping Israeli strikes on Lebanon was a key demand of Iran, Reuters reports.
As Iran and the United States say they are moving closer to an agreement to end their conflict, the strikes threaten a ceasefire that has halted Israeli attacks on Beirut. The Israeli military has remained in areas south of the Litani River, while strikes have continued in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah, an ally of Iran, responded by firing missiles and sending armed drones towards Israeli soldiers.
Earlier today, Israel called on residents of several villages north of the Litani River to evacuate, which could represent an expansion of Israel's zone of operation.
Negotiations between Israel and Lebanon are continuing, but have been mostly conducted at the ambassadorial level. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said today that it was too early to talk about any high-level meeting between Lebanon and Israel.
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US President Donald Trump has predicted a quick end to war with Iran, as Tehran considers a US peace proposal that sources say would formally end the conflict but leave unresolved key US demands - that Iran suspend its nuclear programme and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reports.
A spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, as reported by the Iranian news agency ISNA, said that Tehran would give its response.
Iranian MP Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesman for the powerful parliamentary committee on foreign policy and national security, said Washington's proposal looked more like "an American wish list than reality."
Trump said yesterday that Iran "wants to make a deal."
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"We've had very good talks in the last 24 hours and it's very possible that we'll make a deal," Trump told reporters.
A Pakistani source and other sources familiar with the negotiations said an agreement on a one-page memorandum that would formally end the conflict was close.
This would initiate talks on unblocking the Strait of Hormuz, lifting US sanctions on Iran, and limiting Iran's nuclear program.
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