President Donald Trump escalated pressure on Iran Thursday, ordering the U.S. Navy to use lethal force against any Iranian boats caught laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz as U.S. forces moved to seize another Iranian-linked oil tanker.
The president issued the directive in a Truth Social post Thursday morning, vowing a tougher response as the standoff in the Gulf intensifies.
“I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be (Their naval ships are ALL, 159 of them, at the bottom of the sea!), that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz.
“There is to be no hesitation. Additionally, our mine “sweepers” are clearing the Strait right now. I am hereby ordering that activity to continue, but at a tripled up level!”
Minutes earlier, the Pentagon released video showing U.S. forces boarding the Majestic X, an Iranian-linked tanker in the Indian Ocean that was described as carrying oil produced by the Iranian regime.
“We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate,” the Pentagon wrote on X.
The Pentagon added that sanctioned actors would not be allowed to hide behind international waters, signaling more seizures could follow as the U.S. blockade continues.
The latest interdiction came one day after Iranian forces opened fire on commercial shipping in the strait and seized two vessels, according to Iranian state media and maritime reporting. Iranian outlets circulated footage showing masked commandos boarding ships as the confrontation widened beyond rhetoric and warnings.
The escalating clash has helped choke off traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil flows. Markets reacted fast. Brent crude jumped above $103 a barrel Thursday morning, up about 1.3%, as traders priced in the growing risk that the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran could collapse.
Donald Trump has extended the ceasefire multiple times while keeping the blockade on Iranian ports in place, framing the naval pressure as leverage to force Tehran back to the table without reopening a full-scale bombing campaign.
Iran’s attacks this week followed Trump’s announcement Sunday that U.S. naval forces fired on, disabled and seized the Iranian-flagged cargo ship Touska in the Gulf of Oman. Trump said the vessel ignored warnings while attempting to breach the blockade and that U.S. Marines took control after disabling its engine. Trump later described the seized cargo as “a ‘gift from China.’”
MORE ON THE STRAIT: WATCH: U.S. Navy Seizes Iranian Vessel Outside Strait Of Hormuz
There was no immediate response from Tehran Thursday on the Majestic X seizure.
China, the largest buyer of Iranian oil, has been permitted by Tehran to continue transiting vessels through the strait since the start of the war, alongside select tankers bound for Pakistan and India.
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