Trump has issued a shoot-and-kill order for any boats laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
“I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be (Their naval ships are ALL, 159 of them, at the bottom of the sea!), that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz,” the president wrote on Truth Social. “There is to be no hesitation.”
“Additionally, our mine ‘sweepers’ are clearing the Strait right now. I am hereby ordering that activity to continue, but at a tripled-up level!” he added.
Iran’s tanker fees
Iran is collecting fees on tankers passing through the strait even though traffic is almost nonexistent. Iranian lawmaker Abbas Papizadeh confirmed in remarks before parliament that authorities are collecting tolls from ships passing through the strait. The money will go into “state coffers.”
He said the amount charged for the ships depends on the vessel’s size, the cargo, and its volume.
Mr. Papizadeh said that, due to security concerns, commercial traffic in the strait’s typical shipping routes has dropped dramatically, making it necessary for ships to travel closer to Iranian waters.
Hamidreza Haji Babaei, Iran’s deputy parliament speaker, confirmed separately on Thursday that funds from the tolls had been “deposited into the central bank account.”
Meanwhile, the U.S. seized two tankers.
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— One America News (@OANN) April 23, 2026
American forces are now intercepting and boarding tankers thousands of miles away from Iranian waters, aimed at cutting off Tehran’s oil customers — especially China, its largest buyer — from millions of barrels of supply. For the blockade to succeed, the US needs to create enough economic pressure on Iran to force it to meet American demands. At the same time, Iran has largely shut down shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most critical oil chokepoint.
As for the Hezbollah-israel ceasefire, Hezbollah has broken the ceasefire, and Israel is waiting for President Trump to give them the okay to fire back.