The stunning message from the first public message on Thursday by Iran’s new Leader, Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei is that “The Strait of Hormuz must remain closed.” In seven words, he threw the gauntlet at President Trump belying all expectations that he will opt for continuity in policy. Not only is Trump in no position to decide a timeline for the war but Mojtaba effectively announced the next phase — a war of attrition. “The will of the people is to continue effective defence”, he stated. 

In sharp contrast with Trump’s style of dictating Americans’ information diet, a significant part of Mojtaba’s statement was devoted to the central role of the Iranian people. For Iran, this war is not an “excursion”; nor is the “win” measured with coffee spoons as in sports, where the score declares the victor in a timeline. 

CNN’S Nick Walsh began his brilliant essay today with these words: “The bravado and gamer-style videos of the US government… belie the extraordinary seriousness of an intractable moment: how far do the Americans have to go, not just to declare ‘we won’, as Trump did Wednesday,… but to make Iran behave as if it has suffered a defeat? 

“Trump is now caught in the oldest trap of modern warfare — believing a swift, surgical military operation will yield quick, enduring political faults…  Whatever force a military fails or succeeds in applying at the start, the people it is attacking have greater commitment to defending their lands and hones.” 

Indeed, the world is taking note — including India’s prime minister. After hanging out with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv three days before the attack on Iran and pledging, during........

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