The US military “eliminated” 16 Iranian mine-laying vessels near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, the US Central Command said in a statement, as President Donald Trump warned that any mines laid in the Strait by Iran must be removed immediately. Trump previously said the US had “completely destroyed” 10 inactive mine-laying vessels.
In an apparent response to media reports that Iran had begun laying mines in the waterway, Trump posted on Truth Social: “If Iran has put out any mines in the Hormuz Strait, and we have no reports of them doing so, we want them removed, IMMEDIATELY!”
He said that if Tehran did not do so it would face military consequences, without providing details. Trump also said the US was using the same technology deployed against drug traffickers to “permanently eliminate any boat or ship attempting to mine the Hormuz Strait.”