WEST PALM BEACH, United States (AP) — At war with Iran, US President Donald Trump is cycling through an increasingly desperate list of options as he searches for a solution to the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz. He has jumped from calls to secure the waterway through diplomatic means to lifting sanctions and now escalating to a direct threat against civilian infrastructure in the Islamic Republic.

Trump and his allies insist they were always prepared for Iran to block the strait, yet the Republican president’s erratic strategy has fueled criticism that he is grasping for answers after going to war without a clear exit plan. On Saturday came his latest attempt, via an ultimatum to Iran: Open the strait within 48 hours or the United States will “obliterate” the country’s power plants.

Trump’s aides defended the threat as a hard-edged tactic to press Iran into submission. American opponents framed it as the failure of a president who miscalculated what it would take to get out of a geopolitical mire.

“Trump has no plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, so he is threatening to attack Iran’s civil power plants,” said Democratic Senator Ed Markey, adding: “This would be a war crime.”

“He’s lost control of the war and he is panicking,” said Democratic Senator Chris Murphy, responding to Trump’s post.

Over the course of about a week, Trump has repeatedly shifted his approach on the crucial waterway for global oil and gas transport. There is growing urgency for Trump as soaring oil prices rattle global markets and pinch American consumers months before pivotal midterm elections.

Trump tried his hand at a diplomatic solution a week ago when he called for a new international coalition to send warships to the strait.

Allies turned him down. Trump then said the US could manage on its own. On Friday, he suggested other countries would have to take over as the US eyes an exit. Hours later, he indicated the waterway would somehow “open itself.”

“You can’t all of a sudden walk away after you’ve kind of created the event and expect other people to........

© The Times of Israel