Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said that if the US-Iran agreement fails, President Trump will forcibly take control of the Strait of Hormuz, collect tolls from shipping to fund the operation, expand the Abraham Accords to include Saudi Arabia in 2026 — and if Iran challenges US control, "we will erase it." Graham also stated that if Iran attacks Israel through Hezbollah, the new policy will be for the US to strike Iran directly, according to the senator's remarks.
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) escalated his Iran warnings Sunday evening, telling The Zioneer that if Hezbollah attacks Israel, the new U.S. policy would be to strike Iran directly — not merely respond to the proxy. The remarks sharpen a threat Graham first made earlier Sunday at 16:20 Jerusalem, when he said that if the U.S.-Iran nuclear deal collapses, President Trump would seize the Strait of Hormuz, levy shipping tolls to fund the operation, and expand the Abraham Accords to include Saudi Arabia by 2026 — and that if Iran resists, "we will erase it."
The thread has thickened rapidly since 16:20 Jerusalem, when the first reports emerged of Trump threatening to seize the Strait if Iran closes it. Within minutes, the president specified he would take a 20% cut of passing oil and impose transit tolls, then told Fox News "we might have to take it over" and threatened to "blow them up." By 16:20 the same hour, Graham had added the Abraham Accords expansion. The Zioneer's own report at 18:36 Jerusalem — the version already in the thread — confirmed Graham's full threat set. Now the senator has added the Hezbollah-Israel trigger, moving from a general deterrence posture to a specific chain of retaliation.
As The Zioneer reported on June 11, Graham had already called for ending U.S. restraint on Israel and using force if Iran did not sign a deal immediately. By June 12, Trump said the U.S. and Iran were close to a 60-day ceasefire that would reopen the Strait without tolls — a track the president reiterated Friday. Earlier Sunday, The Zioneer also reported Trump warning that without a deal, U.S. military action could close the Strait for an extended period, and that he threatened to "take over the rest of Iran" if President Pezeshkian did not "shut his mouth."
It remains unclear whether Graham is speaking from direct coordination with the White House or offering his own interpretation of Trump's thinking. No official statement from the administration has confirmed the new Hezbollah-Israel retaliation policy, and the 60-day ceasefire track — under which the Strait would reopen without tolls — is still described by Trump as active.
8 developments
- StrongTrump warns he may impose Strait of Hormuz tolls if no Iran deal in 60 days
- StrongTrump: US and Iran close to 60-day ceasefire deal, Strait of Hormuz to reopen
- DevelopingTrump: Without a deal, US military actions could shut Hormuz for extended period
- StrongSenator Graham says Trump has a new policy: US will respond in Iran if Hezbollah attacks Israel
Source and signal
- Internal intake