President Donald Trump sent a pointed message to Tehran on Sunday, posting a ten-second artificial intelligence video depicting Iran’s most critical oil terminal “blown to smithereens.” The provocative footage came just hours after American warplanes struck Iranian forces for the first time in a month.
Iran’s state oil company chief dismissed it as “laughable.”
Hamid Bovard, who heads the National Iranian Oil Company, insisted Monday that “conditions in Kharg are calm and appropriate.” The facility, which handles roughly 90 percent of Iran’s oil exports, wasn’t among the confirmed targets in Sunday’s strikes. But Trump’s message was unmistakable.
The actual U.S. airstrikes hit two missile launchers on Larak Island, hundreds of miles from Kharg Island, after American forces observed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps personnel preparing to deploy more sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz.
“IRGC forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz,” CENTCOM spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins confirmed Sunday.
The timing proved significant. Just days earlier, U.S. Central Command revealed that American personnel had quietly disarmed and cleared most of the mines Iran had previously scattered throughout the critical shipping lane.
“Last week, CENTCOM completed clearing sea mines from the strait’s international shipping routes,” Hawkins added. “U.S. forces are monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce through this essential waterway.”
Sunday’s operation marked the first acknowledged American attacks on Iranian targets since July 29, when U.S. forces hit dozens of surveillance and coastal weapons sites controlled by the IRGC. President Trump had paused military action on August 1 at the request of Middle Eastern allies including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, who sought more time for diplomatic efforts.
That pause ended when Iran moved to re-mine the strait.
Tehran retaliated swiftly, launching drones and ballistic missiles at U.S. positions in Jordan and the UAE. American and allied defenses intercepted most or all of the incoming weapons, with no damage reported as of Monday morning.
The IRGC called its counterattack “necessary and lawful,” a characterization CENTCOM flatly rejected.
“U.S. forces took limited, precise action against IRGC minelaying forces posing an imminent threat in the Strait of Hormuz,” CENTCOM responded. “In essence, Iran created the threat and the U.S. military eliminated it to protect civilian mariners, commercial shipping, and the free flow of global commerce.”
Iran also claimed an oil tanker struck one of its mines Monday and caught fire. CENTCOM called that claim false.
“No ships have hit mines in the Strait of Hormuz. This is yet another IRGC attempt to intimidate regional commercial shipping through disinformation,” the command stated.
Iranian state media acknowledged explosions near Larak Island, and the IRGC reported “the martyrdom and injury of several of our fighters and compatriots.” The regime denounced the strikes as “a fatal mistake by the Trump regime during the economic war.”
President Trump has repeatedly floated the possibility of seizing or destroying Kharg Island entirely, a move that would cripple Iran’s oil industry. While Iran operates another terminal in the port of Jask on the Gulf of Oman, it lacks the infrastructure to replace Kharg’s capacity.
