(The Epoch Times)—President Donald Trump on April 23 said he authorized the U.S. military to “shoot and kill” Iranian boats placing mines in the Strait of Hormuz in a bid to ease trafficking through the strategic waterway.
The U.S. Navy was directed “to shoot and kill any boat,” including Iran’s fleet of “small boats,” that are laying mines in the strait, Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.
“There is to be no hesitation,” he added.
The president said he would order U.S. minesweeping ships to continue to clear any mines that may have been set in the strait.
The post suggested that Trump is seeking to reopen the strait—which connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman in the Indian Ocean and sees around one-fifth of the world’s oil pass through—after it has effectively been choked off to commercial traffic since late February.
After the U.S. and Israeli militaries started launching strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, Tehran responded by attacking or seizing vessels in the Strait of Hormuz and elsewhere. The Iranian regime has also fired explosive drones and missiles at Israel and neighboring countries.
With the strait’s traffic significantly down, the price for a barrel of oil and fuel prices have surged. The international standard benchmark, Brent crude, again reached $100 per barrel this week, rising to $103 during trading on Thursday morning.
Gas prices in the United States also increased on Thursday, to an average of $4.03 per gallon of regular gasoline nationwide, according to the American Automobile Association. Just prior to the war, U.S. prices averaged slightly below $3 per gallon.
Meanwhile, Trump has pushed for Iran to reopen the strait and previously warned that the United States would attack the country’s power plants and bridges if there is no agreement with Washington. Still, he announced a two-week ceasefire that he extended earlier this week so as to allow the Iranian regime’s leadership to submit a proposal.
The U.S. Navy has imposed a blockade of Iran’s ports in a bid to place economic pressure on Tehran to reach a deal. U.S. Central Command said in a post on Wednesday night that it has told 31 ships to turn around or return to port during the blockade.
The U.S. military said hours later on Thursday that it seized another tanker associated with smuggling Iranian oil, the Majestic X, in the Indian Ocean. The seizure comes a day after Iran attacked three cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz, capturing two of them. Ship-tracking data showed the Majestic X in the Indian Ocean between Sri Lanka and Indonesia.
“We will continue global maritime enforcement to disrupt illicit networks and interdict vessels providing material support to Iran, wherever they operate,” the Department of War wrote on X, confirming the Majestic X was seized.
Semi-official Iranian media outlet Tasnim News said in an X post on Thursday that Iran has started “depositing transit fees collected from ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz into the national treasury.”
Earlier this month, Trump suggested that Iran’s move to charge transit fees to commercial vessels could trigger future military action.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
