The phrase “Orphan Pearl” was coined in the 1960s by an Iranian author, referring to Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf, which is a heavily fortified Iranian oil terminal. It was called the “orphan of the pearl” because of its solitary location. Today, it stands as the heart of Iran’s oil industry.
This is not just geography. This is leverage.
As I said at the Israel Government Media Conference in 2023, Iran is rushing toward an atomic bomb. If Osama bin Laden had possessed one, New York City and Washington, DC, would have been vaporized. If Adolf Hitler had acquired one, we would all be speaking German.
This is why the question is not simply about weapons; it is about stopping the system that makes those weapons possible.
For decades, the Iranian regime has financed terrorism, regional militias, and its powerful security apparatus through one primary source: oil. Cut off that revenue, and the regime’s power structure begins to unravel.
Kharg Island controls virtually the entire flow of Iran’s crude oil exports. Nearly one billion barrels of oil pass through its terminals each year. Roughly 90% of Iran’s exports are processed and shipped from this single strategic location.
In many ways, Kharg Island is the piece that keeps the regime alive.
Analysts have consistently focused on Iran’s missiles, its military forces, and its network of regional proxies. But the path to stopping Iran’s aggression does not begin on the battlefield. It begins with its economy.
A strategic checkmate
Iran has attempted to shut down the Strait of Hormuz, seeking to checkmate US President Donald Trump. But there is a counter-move awaiting Trump, one that changes the entire board.
If Iran believes it can control the global energy chokepoint, the United States has the ability to cut off Iran’s economic lifeline. Kharg Island, the Orphan Pearl, is not just a strategic asset; it is the piece that delivers checkmate.
The United States can do to Kharg Island what Iran is attempting to do in the Strait of Hormuz, and it can do so without putting American military personnel at significant risk. A US blockade of Kharg Island could be achieved through a naval quarantine, targeting oil tankers while avoiding a risky ground invasion.
Such a strategy would allow the United States to sever Iran’s primary source of revenue while avoiding the dangers of occupying the island, which is heavily defended by Iranian forces. It would also keep US military personnel out of the direct line of fire from Iranian missiles.
A sea blockade, which I call a quarantine of the “Orphan Pearl,” would intercept all tankers leaving Kharg Island. This approach could be implemented by US naval forces operating outside the range of Iranian shore-based missiles. The result would be devastating: the economic collapse of Iran, making it impossible for the Revolutionary Guard or the Iranian armed forces to be paid. In essence, it would bankrupt the regime.
History reminds us of the power of this kind of pressure. In 1979, during the Iranian Revolution, it was a nationwide oil strike that became the decisive factor in the fall of shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi. Once the oil stopped flowing, the regime lost its ability to survive.
The lesson is clear: control the oil, and you control the outcome.
Trump built his reputation on leverage. He understands that the strongest negotiating position comes before the negotiation even begins.
Interrupting Iran’s access to Kharg Island would strike at the heart of its leverage and shift the balance against Tehran.
This is not just a military strategy; it is economic warfare at its most decisive point.
By cutting off from oil revenue, the regime would no longer be able to sustain its military, its proxies, or the forces that keep it in power. The structure that fuels repression at home and aggression abroad would begin to collapse. And the Iranian people, who are desperate for freedom, would finally have the opportunity to rise.
The consequences extend far beyond Iran. Nations like China, which depend heavily on Iranian oil, would suddenly face a dramatically reshaped energy landscape. At that moment, Trump would have the leverage to negotiate historic deals with China, something no American president has ever achieved.
The most effective strategy is not to destroy an enemy, but to deny it the resources that sustain it. In the end, this is how the game is won, not through endless conflict, but through one decisive move. Checkmate.
And if Iran does not back down, the message must be unmistakable: Donald Trump has the power to bankrupt a terror state, prevent an apocalyptic crisis, and send a clear warning to every would-be aggressor in the world.
The writer has written 120 books and is a #1 New York Times bestselling author. He is the founder of Jerusalem’s Friends of Zion Museum, Holland’s Ten Boom Museum, and Churches United with Israel, the largest Christian Zionist network in America, with more than 30 million followers.