On Wednesday, Colombia inaugurated its embassy in Jerusalem, joining a narrow circle of countries that have established their diplomatic representation with Israel in this city, whose status as the capital of Israel is not recognized by the international community.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said: “It is an important day for the State of Israel, and also an important day for the city of Jerusalem,” while signing the embassy’s golden record, in the presence of his Colombian counterpart, Omar Paula.
The inauguration ceremony was attended by the Mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Leon, and the Ambassador of Colombia, Tanya Gilinsky.
The decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem came at the initiative of conservative Colombian President Abelardo de la Esperia, an ally of US President Donald Trump who had previously moved the US embassy to Jerusalem in 2018 during his first presidential term.
The vast majority of countries that establish official diplomatic relations with the Israeli authorities maintain their embassies in Tel Aviv. While the United States, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Fiji, Nauru, and Somaliland (the unilaterally declared Republic of Somaliland) have embassies in Jerusalem, contrary to international consensus.
Last week, Sa'ar said that the Democratic Republic of the Congo would soon move its embassy to Jerusalem.
The issue of the status of Jerusalem is one of the most complex and sensitive issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israel annexed East Jerusalem after its occupation of the West Bank, during the Arab-Israeli War in 1967, but this annexation is not recognized by the United Nations.
Two senior Iranian officials told Reuters news agency that Iran is using new methods to target ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, in an effort to keep oil prices high and influence the US midterm elections.
Iran has been seeking to impose its control over the Strait of Hormuz since the United States and Israel launched attacks on it on February 28. Tehran restricted passage through the waterway, through which before the war about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies passed, in an attempt to gain pressure on Washington.
Iranian threats and attacks severely reduced shipping traffic through the strait, causing oil prices to rise, although some oil shipments continued to transit.
The two officials refused to provide details about the new strategy, but one of them said that Iran began about ten days ago to use different attack methods against ships that it considers to be violating its restrictions, adding that this led to an increase in attacks on those ships.
They said that the strategy included a change in the type and frequency of attacks, and that one of its goals was to influence the outcome of the American elections.
One of the officials stated, “The goal is to thwart the efforts of the United States and its allies to reduce global oil prices.”
The two officials said that the decision to use the new strategy was made at the highest levels of Iranian leadership, and was fully coordinated throughout the country's ruling regime.
Tehran uses observers
An American military official, who requested to remain anonymous, confirmed that Iran has changed its methods in a fundamental way, as the Iranian Revolutionary Guard began using unarmed observers on small boats to monitor potential targets, including US Navy ships, after the United States destroyed most of Iran’s radar capabilities.
The official said that, in a previously undisclosed incident that occurred last week, the US military monitored Iranian observers working from a sailboat and informing the Revolutionary Guard of the targets. He added that the American forces confronted the boat and ordered those on board to leave it and then destroyed it, without causing any human casualties.
The official confirmed that Iran, which does not want to risk its remaining speedboats, was unable to prevent the increase in oil exports through the Strait, especially after US strikes destroyed its naval forces.
The war, and its monthly cost of three billion dollars, has become a major focus of American campaigns for the midterm elections scheduled for November, which will determine which party controls Congress.
US President Donald Trump is considering the next steps against Iran, but said he will not launch another attack before the elections.
At the same time, the United States imposes a naval blockade on Iranian ports and expands sanctions, in an attempt to increase economic pressure on Tehran to reach an agreement that ends the conflict.
Tension over the Strait of Hormuz has left global energy markets vulnerable to further turmoil, as the risks of attacks and rising shipping and insurance costs complicate efforts to return shipping traffic to normal levels.
Larger scale attacks
Independent data shows that attacks on commercial ships still crossing the Strait have risen to their highest levels since the start of the war over the past few days.
The two officials said that Tehran will also expand the geographical scope of its operations within the framework of the new strategy to go beyond the Strait of Hormuz and include further waters.
Analysis from sources in the maritime security sector, based on attacks reported to the UK Maritime Trade Operations Authority and companies working in maritime security in the region, suggests that this may have already begun.
These analyzes show that Iran has been targeting ships in areas beyond the Strait of Hormuz, including ships off the coasts of Qatar and the UAE in the past few days.
The second Iranian official stated that Tehran would not allow Trump to reduce oil prices before the November elections. “When they think they are getting close to the point where prices will fall, we will push them away from it,” he said. "It's a chess game." He added: “Such ships will not be safe anywhere, even outside the Strait of Hormuz.”
