With Iran rejecting US President Donald Trump's ceasefire deal in favour of a permanent end to the war under five tough conditions, the Pentagon is now mulling military options for a "final blow" to end the war on its terms.
This comes amid rumours of the assassination of Iranian Navy chief Alireza Tangsiri in airstrikes on parts of Bandar Abbas.
Tangsiri, whose alleged death has not been confirmed yet, is said to have been the brains behind the usage of the Hormuz Strait as Tehran's leverage in the war.
Despite Tehran effectively countering Washington's rhetoric on the war, which nears its fourth week, an Axios report notes that some US officials still think a crushing show of force to conclude the fighting would give the US more leverage in peace talks or simply give Trump some form of victory.
The report added that the Pentagon has presented four "final blow" options to Trump:
1) Invading or blockading Kharg Island, a tiny piece of land from where a major chunk of Iran's oil export operations are handled.
2) Blocking or seizing ships that export Iranian oil on the eastern side of the Hormuz Strait.
3) Invading Larak, another island that helps Iran retain its control over the Hormuz Strait. This strategically located island hosts Iranian bunkers, attack boats that can blow up cargo ships, and radars that monitor movements in the crucial waterway.
4) Seizing three strategic islands—Abu Musa and two smaller ones—which lie near the western entrance of the Hormuz Strait. These islands are controlled by Iran, but their sovereignty has historically been disputed by the UAE.
In the meantime, Iranian lawmaker M.B. Ghalibaf has warned "Iran enemies" against attacking and/or seizing any of Tehran's islands, promising revenge.
"If they take a step, all the vital infrastructure of that regional country will be relentlessly targeted without any restrictions," he wrote in an X post.
The Iranian military has also set up additional traps—in the form of anti-armour and anti-personnel mines positioned on the shoreline and around the island—and military personnel on Kharg Island to further prevent the possibility of a ground invasion.