IRAN’S Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi today slammed the US for overplaying its hand against Tehran based on poor intelligence.

Posting to social media, Mr Araghchi said the US “has long miscalculated due to intelligence failures,” including when launching its war on Iran.

Mr Araghchi added that the actions of the US in the Strait of Hormuz were “an even bigger miscalculation.”

“Worse than fake news is fake intelligence,” the foreign minister said.

The intelligence failures of the US are having a devastating impact on Washington’s political and military power in the region as well as on the world economy.

One of the world’s top container shipping companies, Hapag-Lloyd, disclosed today that the conflict in the Middle East has cost the group $600 million (around £452m) in the second quarter of this year.

The German shipping giant said its net profit fell to $83m (about £62m), down from $306m (£230m) a year earlier.

The company added that strong exports from Asia and improved demand in the US partially offset losses arising from Middle East disruptions.

In its Liner Shipping segment, operating profit fell to $153m from $167m (£115m to £126m) due to additional costs for bunker, insurance, storage, rerouting and inland transportation following the strait’s closure.

There is increasing speculation that the Israeli government was behind providing fake intelligence that the Iranians were planning to shoot US President Donald Trump’s aircraft, Air Force One, out of the sky as he returned from the recent summit of the Nato military alliance in Ankara, Turkey.

The Washington Post cited US officials on Wednesday, saying that US intelligence officials expressed scepticism about the alleged Iranian assassination threat that was passed on by Israel.

The threat sparked a secret manoeuvre to fly him out of Ankara in an alternate military aircraft.

The Israeli government reportedly passed on information about the threat to the CIA, but the agency’s analysts did not find the intelligence convincing and informed administration officials of their reservations, according to the report.

Reports concerning threats against Mr Trump’s life were based on Israeli sources rather than US agencies, with some analysts considering them to be of low credibility, according to the Washington Post.

Addressing reporters on Tuesday, Mr Trump confirmed that he had secretly switched planes on the tarmac in Ankara, saying he was following the instructions of his security detail.