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On Thursday, Trump announced via social media that he had instructed the U.S. Navy to take decisive action against any vessels, regardless of size, that attempt to deploy mines in the Strait of Hormuz. “These boats will be shot and destroyed,” he declared.
He further emphasized the urgency of the matter by stating, “There must be no delay. Our minesweeping operations are already underway in the Strait, and I am ordering a significant increase in these efforts—tripling our current activities!”
The Department of Defense shared video evidence showing U.S. forces aboard the Guinea-flagged oil tanker Majestic X, which had been confiscated in the Indian Ocean.
In a statement, the Pentagon affirmed, “We are committed to global maritime security by targeting unlawful networks and intercepting vessels that provide support to Iran, no matter where they operate.”
According to ship-tracking data, the Majestic X was located in the Indian Ocean, positioned between Sri Lanka and Indonesia. This was near the last known location of the oil tanker Tifani, which U.S. forces had previously seized. The Majestic X was en route to Zhoushan, China.
The vessel previously had been named Phonix and had been sanctioned by the US Treasury Department in 2024 for smuggling Iranian crude oil in contravention of US sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
There was no immediate response from Iran on the news of the seizure.
It comes a day after Iran attacked three cargo ships in the strait, capturing two of them, in a move that intensified its assault on shipping in the key waterway through which 20 per cent of the world’s traded oil passes in peacetime.
On Tuesday, Trump extended a ceasefire while maintaining an American blockade of Iranian ports. There was no immediate sign whether peace talks, previously hosted by Pakistan, would resume anytime soon.
The standoff between the US and Iran has effectively choked off nearly all exports through the strait with no end in sight.
Since the February 28 start of the war between Iran, Israel and the United States, more than 30 ships have come under attack in the waters of the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman.
The threat of attack, rising insurance premiums and other fears have stopped traffic from moving through the strait. Iran’s ability to restrict traffic through the strait, which leads from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean, has proved a major strategic advantage.
The ceasefire has been strained by duelling US attacks on Iranian ships and those by Iran on commercial vessels. It also remains 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 deal.
The conflict already has sent gas prices skyrocketing far beyond the region and raised the cost of food and a wide array of other products. Officials around the world have warned the impact to businesses, consumers and economies could be long-lasting.
Iran’s exiled Crown Prince splattered in Germany
On Thursday, Iran’s exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi was splattered with red liquid as he left a building after a news conference in Berlin.
The alleged perpetrator was immediately detained by police.
During the event, Pahlavi criticised the ceasefire between the US and Iran, arguing that the agreement assumes the Iranian government’s behaviour will change and “you’re going to deal with people who all of a sudden have become pragmatists”.
Pahlavi, 65, has been in exile for nearly 50 years.
His father, Iran’s shah, was so widely hated that millions took to the streets in 1979, forcing him from power.
Nevertheless, Pahlavi is trying to position himself as a player in his country’s future.
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