What normal country would allow another country to attack its shipping?  Iran is not normal.  Those shipments are crucial to maintaining the Crescent.  It is dozens of ships over two years.  Fascinating article revealing some intelligence and covert operations.  “Much More Than 12: Israel Attacked Dozens of Tankers, Iran Lost Billions,” Amos Harel, Haaretz, March 22, 2021.

“Iran is increasingly obsessed with defeating Saudi forces in Yemen,” Seth Frantzman, Jerusalem Post, March 22, 2021.

“Iran is Using Hezbollah as a Potent Weapon,” Shaheer Ahmad, International Policy Digest Blog, March 22, 2021.

Interesting proposition, that Iran is holding an entire country hostage.  “Iran holds Lebanon hostage as its economy collapses,” Hussein, Aboubakr Mansour, JNS, March 22, 2021.

“These 6 charts show how sanctions are crushing Iran’s economy,” Abigail Ng, CNBC, March 22 2021.