Over. Not Out.

Operation Epic Fury is concluded.

“Most mornings I learn more from New Items than I do from all of the traditional papers I read combined.” — Michael Blair, former presiding partner, Debevoise & Plimpton.

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1. The US said offensive operations against Iran are over as it shifts to protecting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, but the targeting of another cargo vessel after a day of strikes signaled that the conflict is dragging on. “Operation Epic Fury is concluded,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters at the White House Tuesday, 66 days after the US and Israel began bombing Iran. “We achieved the objectives of that operation.” (Source: bloomberg.com)

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2. President Donald Trump said late Tuesday that he was pausing the military’s new operation to clear a transit path through the Strait of Hormuz for commercial vessels, halting a mission that had only just begun, even as more than 1,500 commercial ships are still waiting to get through Iran’s closure of the critical waterway. Trump said the pause “comes at the request of Pakistan and other countries,” and means that U.S. military operations, including using warships to clear a path through the strait, will be halted “for a short period of time to see whether or not the [peace] agreement can be finalized and signed,” Trump wrote in a social media post. (Source: washingtonpost.com)

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3. Iran will only accept “a fair and comprehensive agreement” in its negotiations with the U.S. on ending ​the war in the Middle East, its foreign minister said earlier today, as President Trump cited “great progress” in the ‌process. “We will do our best to protect our legitimate rights and interests in the negotiations,” Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said in Beijing after a meeting with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi, Iranian media reported. “We only accept a fair and comprehensive agreement.” (Source: reuters.com)

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4. The Wall Street Journal:

President Trump chose to look the other way after Iran launched three salvos of missiles and drones into the United Arab Emirates, one of America’s main Middle Eastern partners, despite a cease-fire he negotiated nearly a month ago.

The likely conclusion in Tehran, Gulf governments fear, is that further escalation pays off because Trump is so intent on extricating himself from the war that he will ignore renewed Iranian attacks on America’s regional allies.