US halts Iran strikes 'for time being,' as focus shifts to economic sanctions, Rubio says - report

Operation Economic Outcast was announced on Monday by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, following earlier threats of an "economic D-Day" against the regime.Follow us on GoogleUS Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks during a cabinet meeting at Camp David in Thurmont, Maryland, US, July 31, 2026.(photo credit: REUTERS/Daniel Heuer)ByMIRIAM SELA-EITAMAUGUST 26, 2026 08:38The United States will refrain from striking Iran "for the time being," US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told several foreign counterparts, Axios reported Tuesday, citing a US official and a second source familiar with the matter.According to the sources, the US instead intends to pressure Tehran through other means, including the recently announced Operation Economic Outcast, though the official did not rule out a return to strikes should Iran attack the US first.Another US official said that the US Navy's clearing of mines from the Strait of Hormuz is a "watershed moment in the war," which removes one of Iran's main points of leverage in the war."The Iranians have lost control over the strait. Now the US controls it," Axios quoted one US official as saying.Rubio outlined the Trump administration's current policy on Iran to his counterparts, Axios reported, including the intention to avoid military action against Iran for the time being, increasing economic pressure on Tehran, and transporting as much oil as possible through the Strait of Hormuz.Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, August 17, 2026. (credit: REUTERS/STRINGER)The policy is expected to last until after the US midterm elections on November 3, according to a second US official, after which a new military offensive might return to the table."The Iranian economy is in free fall, and the regime's military has been decimated," US State Department Spokesman Tommy Pigott told Axios, "and we are cutting off every financial lifeline the regime has remaining.""The president has been clear that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, and that he will use the tools necessary to ensure that objective is accomplished."US launches Operation Economic OutcastOperation Economic Outcast was announced on Monday by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, following earlier threats of an "economic D-Day" against the regime."Our objective is to sever every economic lifeline that sustains this tyrannical regime until Tehran stands alone," said Bessent.Bessent described the operation as "a sustained campaign to collapse every last option for Iran," saying that those involved in "any" economic cooperation with Tehran would expose themselves to "the full reach of American power."He added that Iran faces a "very clear choice," saying the regime can either accept "complete global isolation" or a path to normalcy.Bessent described the operation's methods as actions that will "tighten the noose" around Iran's funding sources, leaving it "no breathing space."He listed five Iranian "vital lifelines" that the operation would initially target: digital assets, technology, gold, aviation, and shipping.Aaron Glick, Esther Davis, and Reuters contributed to this report.Follow us on Google