WASHINGTON, Oct 1 (Zark News) — Iran’s Revolutionary Guard told the American public this week that President Donald Trump’s war against Iran has failed, in an unusually direct appeal from Tehran to voters just weeks before the Nov. 3 U.S. midterm elections.
At a news conference in Tehran on Tuesday, Guard spokesman Gen. Hossein Mohebbi read from what he called a “letter to the American people,” saying the only way for the war to end is for Washington to admit defeat and leave, according to the Associated Press. Mohebbi urged Americans to reconsider their leadership and take to the streets to protest what he called the U.S. government’s warmongering policies, accusing Washington of using Iran’s nuclear program as a ruse to “plunder Iran’s wealth” and turn the country “back into a colony.”
The message came amid escalating economic pressure on both sides. Iran’s currency fell to a new record low Tuesday, with traders in Tehran exchanging more than 2.5 million rials to the U.S. dollar, the AP reported, breaking the previous record of 2.2 million set on Sept. 2. The rial has repeatedly hit new lows since the war began in February.
The Trump administration is pressing ahead with economic warfare of its own. The Treasury Department announced sanctions Tuesday against 10 individuals and entities in Iran, Hong Kong and Pakistan accused of procuring weapons and weapons components for Iran, part of what the administration calls “Operation Economic Outcast,” the AP reported.
Diplomatic efforts remain in limbo. Trump said Saturday he had rejected an Iranian peace proposal relayed through Qatari mediators at last week’s U.N. General Assembly, and told Axios on Sunday that he expected U.S. negotiators to continue talks this week, Reuters reported. The president also denied an Axios report that he was willing to ease sanctions and release frozen Iranian funds in exchange for “concrete” steps by Tehran on its nuclear program.
Oil markets have whipsawed on the diplomacy. Brent crude traded around $103 to $106 a barrel in recent sessions, according to Reuters, on track for its biggest monthly gain since July, as investors weighed recovering Gulf crude flows against the risk of renewed strikes. Qatar said Tuesday its shuttle diplomacy between the two sides could still yield a breakthrough.
The war is also fueling the selloff in U.S. government bonds, with investors betting a prolonged conflict will keep energy prices and inflation elevated. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield hit a 24-year high Thursday, a development covered in Zark News’ markets coverage today.
Sources: Associated Press, Reuters
