President Trump Orders US Navy to 'Shoot and Kill' Boats Laying Mines in Hormuz, Intensifying Tensions with Iran
President Trump has directed the US Navy to 'shoot and kill' any boats found laying sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway crucial for global oil transport. This order comes amid heightened tensions between the United States and Iran, following Iran's recent attacks on three ships in the strait, seizing two of them. The US military has also seized another tanker, the Majestic X, associated with smuggling Iranian oil, as part of its global maritime enforcement efforts to disrupt illicit networks supporting Iran. The US blockade of Iranian ports remains in place, effectively choking off nearly all exports through the strait, where 20% of the world’s traded oil passes in peacetime. The conflict has already led to a significant increase in global oil prices, with Brent crude surpassing $100 per barrel.