After thirteen days of sustained American airstrikes against Iran, a sudden pause in the rhythm of war has opened a narrow corridor for diplomacy. President Trump declined to authorize further attacks on Friday, not as a concession but as a recalculation — a recognition that negotiation, brokered quietly through Oman, might accomplish what bombardment alone could not. The Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil flows, remains the fulcrum of the crisis, and the question now is whether this intermission becomes a genuine turning point or merely a breath before the storm resume