Amid concerns that Iran plans to choke off the world’s access to oil,
the U.S. military said Tuesday that its forces had attacked 16 Iranian #mine-laying vessels near a major oil route.
The U.S. Central Command said on social media Tuesday evening that it had struck the vessels near the Strait of Hormuz.
A video accompanying the post showed munitions hitting nine vessels, most of which were moored at the time of the attack
Whether any Iranian mines have been deployed in the water since the United States and Israel began attacking Iran on Feb. 28 was unclear.
In the 1980s, Iranian forces laid mines in the Persian Gulf that required clearance by U.S. Navy minesweepers. In April 1988, an Iranian mine severely damaged
— though did not sink
— an American frigate,
leading U.S. forces to launch retaliatory strikes.
News of the minelayer strikes came on a day when the Trump administration officials sent mixed messages about the war,
including about oil transport.
They were the latest in a string of muddled statements about a conflict that has so far killed more than 1,800 people and disrupted global energy markets.
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2026/03/10/world/iran-war-trump-us-israel?smid=nytcore-ios-share