Trump Says Navy Will ‘Shoot and Kill' Mine Boats Amid Strait Escalation
President Donald Trump has ordered the U.S. Navy to target any boats caught laying sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz. His comments signal a preoccupation by the White House over how to reopen the critical waterway Iran has blockaded in response to strikes the U.S. and Israel launched on February 28.
Trump posted on Truth Social that he had given an order to “shoot and kill any boat” caught laying mines in the strait, adding that “there is to be no hesitation” in a U.S. response.
However, one Iran expert, Ali Vaez from the International Crisis Group, told Newsweek on Thursday: “There is no evidence and no reason for Iran to lay mines. No vessel will take the risk as the traffic remains vulnerable to Iranian projectiles or seizure.”
U.S. Clears Mines
Insurers and shipowners are spooked by vessels transiting a minefield, and while the U.S. military has said it has begun a mine-clearing operation, there is little clarity about how the process is being carried out.
Mark Cancian, a senior adviser with the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Newsweek last week, “The one area we don’t have insight into yet is the mine clearing.
“Centcom announces it’s beginning mine clearing-we haven’t heard anything more about it,” he said. “That’s a big question mark because you’ll have to do that within range of Iranian defenses, so something could happen.”
Iran recently deployed about a dozen mines in the strait whose location is not publicly known Reuters reported last week. Trump said all of Iran’s minelaying ships had been sunk, although there were concerns that Tehran could deploy some additional devices.
Trump’s post on Thursday said U.S. minesweepers were “clearing the strait right now,” suggesting that this process would be speeded up to a “tripled up level.”
Cancian said, “We’re not sending minesweepers out there alone. There’s going to be a tremendous amount of support for them, such as aircraft overhead.”
While technology can allow remote checks for and the removal of mines, clearing the Strait of Hormuz would be a slow, multistep process. The U.S. is expected to use drones, explosive‑laden robots and helicopters to reduce risks, but de‑mining crews could still be vulnerable to Iranian attacks.
“Essentially, we’re going to be daring the Iranians to shoot,” Cancian added. “If they shoot, then we’ll shoot back, and we may end up in another shooting war again.”
US Seizes Another Tanker in Strait of Hormuz
Trump’s post came on the same day that the Pentagon released footage of U.S. troops seizing another tanker associated with smuggling Iranian oil, adding that the Majestic X had been boarded in the Indian Ocean. This is at least the fourth Iranian-flagged tanker diverted by U.S. forces after three other vessels were intercepted off India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.
Iran has fired on three ships in the strait and seized two of them on Wednesday. Around one-fifth of the world’s energy used to transit through the strait.
Trump extended a fragile truce while maintaining an American blockade of Iranian ports and with no diplomatic breakthrough imminent, the price of Brent crude, the international benchmark, was over $100 per barrel on Thursday, about a 40 percent increase from prewar levels.
Separately, Israeli and Lebanese officials were due to meet in Washington on Thursday for a second round of talks aimed at extending a ceasefire in Lebanon, where Israel’s military has targeted the Tehran-linked group Hezbollah.
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This story was originally published April 23, 2026 at 12:07 PM.