Six Nights of Strikes, and Nobody Knows Who in Tehran Can Say 'Stop'
The US and Iran are now in open, sustained warfare — US Central Command confirmed a sixth consecutive night of strikes on Iran, while Iranian retaliation has hit sites in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain. Here's the problem almost no one is talking about: it's not clear who in Tehran actually has the authority to end this. Iran's Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been missing since an airstrike on March 30, and his condition remains unconfirmed.
Bottom Line
This is no longer an exchange of warning shots — it's a sustained war spreading across the Gulf, hitting the very countries that host American forces, with no credible mediator and a possible leadership vacuum in Tehran. The most dangerous feature isn't the intensity of the strikes; it's that the usual machinery for ending a war — trusted brokers, a clear negotiating partner, mutual confidence in a deal — has broken down on every front at once.