U.S. destroys mine layers; Trump demands Strait of Hormuz be opened

U.S. forces have sunk 16 Iranian mine laying vessels, according to U.S. Central Command, as U.S. fighters carried out what Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said was the “most intense day” of U.S. strikes on Iranian targets so far in the 11-day-old conflict. 

Iran responded with its own counterattacks, sending missiles into Israel and staging drone attacks at various points in the Gulf states. 

The mine ayers were not in use, but they could have become part of a reported Iranian plan to mine the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that has been blocked because of Iranian threats. 

The closed strait has been a factor in the dramatic volatility in oil prices since the start of the conflict. Before the start of Israeli and U.S. strikes on Tehran, around a fifth of the world’s oil supply passed through the 13-mile-wide strait.

President Donald Trump has demanded the Strait of Hormuz be opened as part of a wider effort to push energy prices lower, and via social media overnight he warned Iran against mining the strait. 

“If for any reason mines were placed, and they are not removed forthwith, the Military consequences to Iran will be at a level never seen before,” Trump wrote. “If, on the other hand, they remove what may have been placed, it will be a giant step in the right direction.”