US President Donald Trump launched the February offensive against Iran despite warnings from then-Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, US Vice President JD Vance and senior military advisers. Gabbard said killing Iran’s supreme leader would likely usher in a more hard-line successor and could close the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway carrying one-fifth of global oil and gas trade. Vance favored a cautious, negotiation-first approach, while military officials briefed Trump on decisive strike options but warned of munitions shortages and risks to an overstretched force. Trump initially celebrated the killing of then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, but rising fuel prices and a stalled war later prompted Saudi Arabia and Qatar to press for diplomacy. Internal polling showing nearly 80% of Americans favored an agreement helped drive the June interim truce, while Republicans warned about the November midterm elections. Nuclear talks ended on Aug. 17 without a final settlement, and the administration shifted back to Operation Economic Outcast, an economic-warfare campaign built around a sustained naval blockade and sanctions.