DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — President Donald Trump has ordered U.S. forces to “shoot down” small Iranian boats deploying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, he said Thursday, a day after Iran again demonstrated its ability to block traffic through the Channel.
Trump’s social media post came shortly after US forces seized another tanker linked to Iranian oil smuggling, escalating tensions with Tehran across the strait, where 20% of crude oil and natural gas trade is traded.
“I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot at any boat, small boat, however they may be … that are laying mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz,” Trump said, posting that US minesweepers are “clearing the strait right now.”
“I order this activity to continue, but at three times the level!” He added.
The Defense Department released video footage Thursday of U.S. troops on the deck of the Guinea-flagged oil tanker Majestic X, which was captured in the Indian Ocean.
The move came a day after Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guards attacked three cargo ships in the strait, seizing two of them in an attack that raised fresh concerns about the safety of shipping in the waterway.
Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ezei, the powerful head of Iran’s judiciary, said on Wednesday that three “violating vessels” in the strait were “subject to enforcement”.
“The show of strength by Islamic Iran’s armed forces in the Strait of Hormuz is a source of pride,” he wrote in X on Thursday, claiming the Americans “lack the courage” to approach the strait.
Trump has claimed there is a leadership rift in Iran
Ship-tracking data showed the Majestic X in the Indian Ocean between Sri Lanka and Indonesia, roughly the same location as the oil tanker Tiffany, which was previously seized by the US military. It was bound for Zhuushan in China.
The vessel was previously named Phoenix and was approved by the US Treasury Department in 2024 for smuggling Iranian crude oil in violation of US sanctions against the Islamic Republic.
There was no immediate comment from Iran about the seizure.
Trump this week extended the cease-fire, giving the Iranian leadership more time to come up with a “unified resolution” on ending the war, while maintaining a US blockade on Iranian ports.
In a separate post on Thursday, Trump claimed that a leadership rift between moderates and hardliners was confusing Iran.
“Iran is having a very hard time figuring out who their leader is! They just don’t know!” Trump said.
The president has repeatedly said during the cease-fire that began on April 8 that his team is dealing with Iranian officials who want to make a deal, while acknowledging that his decision to kill several top leaders came with complications.
A tenuous ceasefire in Lebanon
Elsewhere on the diplomatic track, Lebanon and Israel were set to hold a second round of talks in Washington to discuss the possibility of extending the ceasefire between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group.
The latest war between Israel and Hezbollah began two days after Israel and the US launched an attack on Iran, after Tehran-backed fighters fired rockets into northern Israel.
In a fresh demonstration of the fragility of the ceasefire that took effect in Lebanon on Friday, Hezbollah said it had attacked Israeli positions in southern Lebanon, targeting Israeli soldiers in the village of Taybeh.
Both sides have accused each other of violating the 10-day ceasefire.
The standoff between the US and Iran has blocked almost all exports through the strait, with no end in sight.
On Thursday, Iran’s exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi was sprayed with red liquid as he exited a building after a press conference in Berlin. The person responsible was immediately arrested by the police.
During the program, Pahlavi criticized the ceasefire between the US and Iran, arguing that the deal would change the behavior of the Iranian government and that “you’re suddenly going to be dealing with people who are pragmatic.”
The 65-year-old Pahlavi has been in exile for nearly 50 years. His father, the Shah of Iran, was so widely hated that millions took to the streets in 1979 to force him from power. Still, Pahlavi is looking to establish himself as a player in his country’s future.
Threats to Strait of Hormuz Shipping
Since the war between Iran, Israel and the United States began on February 28, more than 30 ships have been attacked in waters off the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman.
Threats of attacks, rising insurance premiums and other fears have stopped traffic moving through the strait. Iran’s ability to interdict traffic through the straits leading from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean has proven a major strategic advantage.
Jakob Larsson, head of maritime safety for BIMCO, the largest international association representing shipowners, said in a note Thursday that most shipping companies need assurances from both sides of the conflict that the strait is safe and secure for transit.
The danger to the miners, he wrote, was “of particular concern” if traffic could one day return to normal levels.
The ceasefire has been strained by US attacks on Iranian ships and Iran’s skirmishes on commercial vessels. It is also unclear when, or if, the two sides will meet again in the Pakistani capital Islamabad, where officials say they are still trying to bring the countries together to reach a diplomatic agreement.
The conflict has already sent gas prices skyrocketing outside the region and increased a wide range of food and other products. Officials around the world have warned that the impact on businesses, consumers and economies could be long-lasting.
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Madhani reported from Washington and Kiten reported from Geneva.
