Inside ‘Project Freedom,’ Trump’s aborted bid to reopen the Persian Gulf

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.The Alliance Fairfax, a towering black and white car-carrier ship that had been stranded in the Persian Gulf for over two months, was finally making a break for it.“You are all set to go,” a U.S. military officer radioed as the ship glided through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday and swung around the peninsula at the northern end of Oman. “Safe travels.”Soon after, Iran launched a barrage of missiles and drones at commercial ships, at the U.S.

Navy—and at one of America’s allies, the United Arab Emirates, where an oil transit hub was set ablaze. U.S. helicopters sank Iranian fastboats, and Iranian drones hit a civilian ship.The intervening hours included the most serious escalation in the conflict since President Trump declared a cease-fire in the war in April.Then, almost as quickly as it started, Trump directed the U.S.

operation to guide ships through the strait to be put on pause. Only two vessels are known to have made it through when the president halted operations Tuesday, roughly 36 hours after the project began. Ship traffic, already a trickle, again grounded to a halt.The short-lived exercise, known as Project Freedom, exposed the limits of Trump’s ability to maneuver in the region.

Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, spooked by fear of an escalation and as Washington played down Iran’s attacks, withdrew permission for the U.S. military to use bases and airspace critical to the mission, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. Phone calls between Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman led to a restoration of permission, according to Saudi and U.S.