Washington's Total Economic War Against Iran and Hezbollah

As the Iranian mullah regime continues its relentless near-daily hangings of Iranian teenagers and young people — most of them schoolchildren and university students — from cranes, the Trump Administration has effectively declared an all-out economic war against the Islamic Republic, as President Donald Trump stated unequivocally in the early hours of Thursday.

At a press briefing, the White House chief announced that the United States would shortly impose 'unprecedented' economic sanctions designed to completely isolate Iran economically.

Later on Thursday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent — now a sworn enemy of the mullah regime — was even more explicit, stressing that 'Iran will face the most severe sanctions ever imposed on any country,' and adding that U.S. authorities will take measures against any country that continues to maintain trade relations with Iran.

But the most fundamental point raised by Scott Bessent — one of highly strategic significance — concerned the fate of the Islamic Republic in the shadow of this economic war. 'The Iranian regime will collapse; we will bring down the Iranian regime,' the Treasury Secretary declared.

Oil exports halted

This is arguably the first time a senior American official has stated so clearly and explicitly the U.S. Administration's intention to simply and straightforwardly topple the mullah regime.

Until now, senior officials in Washington had emphasized that their goal was to achieve 'a change in the regime's behavior, not regime change.'

Next Monday, Mr. Bessent is expected to hold a press conference to announce in explicit detail the sanctions to be imposed on the Islamic Republic. But even before the new measures on the horizon are formally announced, Iran's socioeconomic and financial situation is already teetering on the brink of total collapse.

The Governor of the Iranian Central Bank, Nasser Hemmati, acknowledged on Thursday — arguably for the first time — that Iranian oil exports have been completely halted. 'We are no longer exporting any oil whatsoever, and the other problem we face is our inability to access our financial resources,' the Governor stated.

Against this explosive backdrop, Lebanese Shia opposition circles, drawing on information from Tehran, indicate that stirrings of discontent are beginning to emerge in certain segments of the population, while the impact of American sanctions and the naval blockade is increasingly translating into a growing paralysis of the state's administrative apparatus.

This situation is further compounded, the aforementioned circles assert, by deep divisions and power struggles within the ruling establishment.

Hezbollah: 'a terrorist organization under the command of the Revolutionary Guards'

In the wake of this American escalation against the regime — which on Thursday evening condemned Washington's 'economic terrorism' — the U.S. Administration simultaneously launched a serious escalation in its campaign against Hezbollah.

The Treasury Department announced that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has re-listed Hezbollah as a terrorist organization operating under the direct command of the 'Jerusalem Brigade' of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This effectively implies that Hezbollah is regarded as an Iranian organization rather than a Lebanese one.

In this context, OFAC has imposed sanctions on around ten individuals linked to Hezbollah and the Revolutionary Guards. They are accused of covertly funneling hundreds of millions of dollars to Hezbollah from Turkey through commercial flights.

Joseph Aoun received by the Pope

On the ground in Lebanon, attention is primarily focused on the extensive underground military fortifications at Ali el-Taher (in the Nabatieh region), where, according to a Hezbollah source cited Thursday evening by Al-Hadath, around a hundred Shia militants and senior Iranian Revolutionary Guard officers are holed up, besieged by the Israeli army, which is tightening its grip daily. Israel's objective is to carry out gradual encroachment operations in order to trigger the collapse of the tunnels and infrastructure built by the Iranians over several years.

The aforementioned Hezbollah source emphasizes that the Ali el-Taher fortifications represent for the Shia party not only a strategic military asset, but above all carry a 'particular moral significance.'

As a result, the source notes that Hezbollah would rather see the Israeli army simply destroy this infrastructure outright than have it handed over to the Lebanese army, as some local circles had suggested.

Finally, in this broader context, President Joseph Aoun was received early Thursday morning by Pope Leo XIV. On this occasion, the head of state urged the Supreme Pontiff to continue his efforts with international bodies to 'pressure Israel into complying with the provisions of the framework agreement' signed last June by Lebanon and Israel under US auspices.

The Vatican has expressed its support for this framework agreement, which outlines the process approved by both Beirut and Tel Aviv to achieve a situation that would permanently put an end to the state of war between Lebanon and Israel.